Dark Eldar Rumour Summary

[eldargal]

Ok, Dark Eldar rumours taken from the rumour thread over at Warseer, usual caveats apply. Credit to original sources, mostly Harry. For the sake of brevity I've rewritten most parts, go to Warseer if you want to trawl through 35 pages to get the original context and whatnot.

UPDATE: 8-15-2010 (bigred)
RELEASE DATE: November, with unveiling at UK Gamesday

OVERVIEW: Harry says:

“nasty but especially nasty for that first strike”

WEAPONS: Yakface says:

All poisons are 4+
Splinter Rifle 24" SX, AP5, Rapid Fire, Poisoned.
Splinter Carbine 18" SX, AP5, Assault 3, Poisoned.
Splinter Cannon 36" SX, AP5, Assault 4, or Heavy 6 Poisoned.
Spllinter Pods are an underslung weapon for the Hellions, essentially similar to the carbine.

MINIS: Scryer in the Darkness says:

Codex
3 metal blisters
2 metal boxes
6 plastic boxes

One more thing to add, now that I've had a chance to comb through all the specialty item codes... one of them has a Dark Eldar prefix.
Specialty items are wide and varied and range from things like limited edition dice sets, basing kits, resin markers, templates and things like the L.O.S Marker Light, but they all carry non-army-specific prefixes. The only army-specific specialty item product code that springs to mind in recent memory (though I'm sure there's been others) is the resin Ork Barricades set.

Waaagh_Gonads says regarding the Dark Eldar Warriors frame:

The warriors are not striding forward and hunched over like they are about to tip over- legs are laid out in a wide stance and the models are much, much better proportioned than the old ones, so no more legs that go all the way up and tiny torsos.
Helmets and non helmeted heads included.
Non helmeted head has a high ponytail.
Ribs/shards of bone poke through loincloths and the ponytail.
The helmets are pretty much identical to the above pic, but with lumps/gems over the ears/temples.
From behind the helmets look exactly like eldar guardian ones.
There is a gem/soulstone on the left chest armour- not the shoulder armour piece as per the above pic.
This is where you have to use your imagination as the pic doesn't show it: On the back there is a backpack that looks like it started as an eldar backpack but does not stick out as far, has vestigal 'vanes' compared to the eldar one (so doesn't stick up above the shoulder) and most excellently down the centre of the backpack, it is recessed with scaled armour over the spine (triangular scales with points downwards)
A high collar that flanges out
Rifle is almost exactly the same as the pic for the base model, even down to the jagged bit that pokes up in front of the warriors abdomen in the pic. There is a variant with what looks to be crossbow arms sticking out laterally (ends up looking like a mini anchor)
Attachable Loincloths (variable designs) One has a skull, one a hook on them.
As per the pic, greaves over the lower legs, then knee pads and scales over the upper legs, with points upwards.
Knife scabbard, 2 'rods' and 2 small sachels on the 'utility belt' posteriorly
Blades of differing lengths and size on various armour parts, primarily lower legs and shoulder pads.
Curved knife HW available.
Attachable blades for the end of splinter rifle.

24 Feb – 27 Mar

•Dark Eldar not Necrons for late 2010 (ColonalKlink, OP, source GW employee)
•Harry indicates complete revisit, rules to do justice to a brand new snazzy model range. Every model redone. Release probable within 12 months.
•Harry ‘wouldn’t be surprised’ to see Gamesday announcement.
•Possible Christmas release. (others mention October-November)
•Harry certain they are coming this time, not certain of when.
•GW committed best resources to DE revisit, including Jes Goodwin as head sculptor
•GW expects DE to be popular and sell well if they do a decent job this time.
•New range described as ‘mind-numbingly’ awesome, unclear if this is from eye witness account or wishful thinking.
•New range to be released in waves, not all waves in production or ready for production.
•Mix of plastic and metal models, no all plastic plans.
•Harry confident of his accuracy re DE.
•“I don't think GW would consider the work of their finest to be any risk at all. The studio have always been of the mindset that if they make the very best toy soldiers they can ... folks will buy them.

There has been no waffle and no delay.

When they have said anything at all they have said very clearly what is going on and why. They have said things like: 'We are doing Dark Eldar', "We have asked Jes to have a crack at them', 'The whole range needs attention', 'It is a big project and we are going to give it the time it deserves', 'We are going to give Jes the time he needs to nail them' There has been no waffle or ambiguity in any statements I have heard about this project ... in fact they have been more open and up front about the development of this project than almost any other., 'They will be released when they are done' 'This won't be for a while'.” “They will not be pushed back, nor will they be late.
They will, much like a wizard, arrive exactly when they are supposed to.”
•DE team given as much time as they need to get things right
•Plastic wyches, old sculpts ‘being burnt as we speak’. Implies new aesthetic.

[Necron_Lord]

Interesting about the change in aestheic for the Wyches. Does that imply a change in their fluff as well? I've been thinking that Wyches are going to be more like their fantasy counterparts after Planetfall came out with the description of the Dark Eldar strategem - Hellish cacophony.

"The amplified shrieks of the crazed worshippers of Khaine and the screaming of the damned grows ever louder, robbing mortal men of their wits."

I also wonder if DE will have some Avatar variant if cults of Khaine are going to figure prominantly in the new DE fluff? I'm looking forward to hearing more as the release comes closer.

[Harry]

Good round up although some of the meaning is lost as what I said was often in joking replys to other posters.

There was no implication implied.
Some other guy said 'you can burn the wytches for all I care' and I was just joshing along with him.

On one of your points. I do not think I have said all the models are done. I have said from what I know of where the models are at .... I think they are coming soon. (Within next 12 months possibly by GD UK)

[eldargal]

Thanks. Originally I tried to keep some of the banter for context but the round up ran to about 12 pages so I decided to summarise, unfortunately this meant sacrificing specificity.
Hm, I thought you said most sculpts were nearing readiness, my bad.

Good round up although some of the meaning is lost as what I said was often in joking replys to other posters.

There was no implication implied.
Some other guy said 'you can burn the wytches for all I care' and I was just joshing along with him.

On one of your points. I do not think I have said all the models are done. I have said from what I know of where the models are at .... I think they are coming soon. (Within next 12 months possibly by GD UK)

[Harry]

OK but you say in your first post that they come in waves and not all waves are done.

[person person]

This is great news, I'm confident Jes will do the range justice but I wonder about the fluff though. I'd like to see some notable battles they've been in and alot more special characters too.

[eldargal]

I've cleaned up the offending point, I think. Blonde and thus easily confused.

OK but you say in your first post that they come in waves and not all waves are done.

[BDub]

That last bullet point is just outright false.

But I am looking forward to new DE. I have always thought that it was the crappy models and the lack of support that made them a failure for so many years. This revisit is well deserved.

[eldargal]

Outright false? Which part are you referring too? The plastic wyches, which have been mentioned in several rumours and seem quite likely given the proliferation of plastic elite units? Or the implied aesthetic, which Harry has already clarified that he meant no implication, I just picked up on it through choice of words (and probably some wishful thinking).
Outright false is pretty strong words for a rumour regardless, unless you have some hard information you would like to share with us?

Edit: Sorry if this comes accross as sounding confrontational, it wasn't intended.

That last bullet point is just outright false.

But I am looking forward to new DE. I have always thought that it was the crappy models and the lack of support that made them a failure for so many years. This revisit is well deserved.

[ragnarcissist]

whos writing the codex? i heard phil kelly....