So after visiting my local GW to read the new Dark Eldar codex, I'm in a position to rewrite my army list for the new codex. My current army list is a mix of shooting and assault which should be easy to replicate in the new codex, max shooty lists would find it hard to replicate since the new codex loses the 100 pt squad of 10 warriors with 2 dark lances.Without further ado, here's my current list to use as a baseline:
Archon - 137
Punisher, Tormentor Helm, Plasma Grenades, Combat Drugs, Shadow Field
Dracon's Retine in Raider - 56 + 136 + 55
Dracon (Agoniser, Pistol)
4 Incubi with 2 Blasters
3 Warriors (bullet catchers :) )
Raider (Dark Lance)
Wyches in Raider - 134 + 55
8 Wyches, including Succusbus with Agoniser & 2 Blasters
Raider (Dark Lance)
Wyches in Raider - 134 + 60
8 Wyches, including Succusbus with Agoniser & 2 Blasters
Raider (Disintegrator)
Warrior Raider Squad [joined by Archon] - 97 + 60
7 Warriors, including Sybarite with Agoniser, Splinter Cannon & Blaster
Raider (Disintegrator)
Warrior Raider Squad - 105 + 55
8 Warriors, including Sybarite with Agoniser, Splinter Cannon & Blaster
Raider (Dark Lances)
10 Warriors with 2 Dark Lances - 100
10 Warriors with 2 Dark Lances & 2 Blasters - 110
10 Warriors with 2 Dark Lances & 2 Blasters - 110
Ravager (3 Disintegrators) - 120
Ravager (3 Disintegrators) - 120
Talos - 100
Totals: 1744 Pts, 78 models
[NB: The talos was in the list to draw heavy weapon firepower and it's ability to kill MEQs in combat, but it's inclusion was mainly because I had a converted model I wanted to use. Most people would just swap the talos for a 3rd ravager]
My old army list was quite shooty (9 Dark Lances, 8 Disintegrators, followed by 12 Blasters at short ranges), but still had 5 raiders moving forwards to get it's occupants in combat, plus the list had 11 models with melee weapons that ignored armour saves to help against heavy armour.
Thoughts on Revising the List
The new pain tokens are a nice addition to the list, and wyches with Feel No Pain would be great in combat (apart from all powerweapon weilding units such as terminators), therefore the Haemonculus' and wracks looked nice to include.
The heavy weapon shooting element of my current list would take a serious hit under the new codex. To get 2 dark lances from a warrior squad would cost 230 pts, not the 100 pts currently, although the new codex unit would have 10 extra bullet catchers if you wanted a unit to stay back and pick off transports to allow the assault units to kill the occupants warrior squads would not be the answer.
Alternative sources for the firepower could be scourges with either blasters or heat lances. When looking at the points they seemed a bit expensive and fragile. Another option would be to use some of the new heavy support vehiciles; str9 lances weapons sounded nice, however without buying a forgeworld flyer I didn't have a model. As I owned 4 heavy support choices already, and was looking to pick up a 3rd ravager from ebay I thought I would try to build a list without them, but would bear them in mind as I really like the forgeworld Void Dragon Pheonix model.
Blasters options were also changed. No longer can wyches include blasters, warriors can only include one (and the price tripled), and although characters and wych/warrior leaders can take blaster pistols (at 3 times the cost the the previous codex's blaster) it won't make up for it.
The last solution would be to admit that such a shooty force would not be competitive, and instead include enough heavy firepower to take down vehicles and instead concentrate on the strengths of the new book.
In my mind a few units stand out as nice to use. Wyches which got cheaper, became troops, and have access to pain tokens, stuck me as a good core to start the army out. Wracks also seem good, and start with a pain token (shame I only have one unit of 9). Ravagers got better because they can move 12" and fire all guns, also the ravagers would have to change from disintegrators to dark lances to cover the anti-tank that the troop choices would lose.
A Quick Note on my Initial List Methodology
Now when I build a new list I first ignore alot of the interesting upgrades to get the most models on the table. If the opponent has enough lascannons left to kill 2 models it's better to have more than 2 models left compared to 2 which are really expensive.
Further iterations of the list will include those hard decisions of what to lose to fit in the more expensive characters & nasty looking upgrades/wargear. I believe if you look at some of the nice wargear/characters in isolation it's easy to say they are an auto include, but once you have a base list and say I'd have to lose one assault unit and their raider which brings the size of my army much smaller than say a Tau, Guard or Tyranid army and on par with a Marine army, you have to remind yourself that an the end of the day the Dark Eldar are an army of T3 models with an armour save that a splinter rifle gets rid of.
So without further ado below is my first list for the new codex:
Archon - 135
Agoniser, Blaster Pistol, Shadow Field, Comabt Drugs
Haemonculus - 55
Venom Blade
6 Incubi - 132
in Raider with Dark Lance and Sail* - 65
9 Wracks - 90
[joined by Archon]
in Raider with Dark Lance and Sail* - 65
9 Wyches with Champion with Agoniser & Blaster Pistol - 135
[joined by Haemonculus]
in Raider with Dark Lance and Sail* - 65
10 Wyches with Champion with Agoniser & Blaster Pistol - 145
in Raider with Dark Lance and Sail* - 65
10 Wyches - 100
in Raider with Dark Lance and Sail* - 65
10 Warriors with Dark Lance & Blaster - 130
in Raider with Dark Lance - 60
10 Warriors with Dark Lance & Blaster - 130
Ravager with 3 Dark Lances - 105
Ravager with 3 Dark Lances - 105
Talos - 100
Totals: 1747 Pts, 75 models
* I can't remember the exact name of the sail, but it allows the raider to move an extra 2D6"
Now I have missed out on loads of upgrades that look good:
- The wracks could have a champion with an agoniser (30 pts extra), plus they could have liquifer guns (Template, Str4, D6 AP) at only 10 pts each
- The talos has upgrades for an extra attack, it's attacks cause intant kill, and/or twin-linked liquifer guns
- the last wych squad has no upgrades, however normally there is a target that doesn't need an expensive 55 pts character (wych,10,champion upgrade,10,agoniser,20,blaster pistol,15), such as any unit with low armour save and/or low toughness
- Night shields and or Flicker fields on the vehicles, although they would be nice, adding the upgrades accross the 8 vehicles (or 9 if I drop the talos for a third ravager) would mean I would have a lose a unit plus more reduce the size of at least one other.
Now the new list has much less firepower (9 Lances, 8 Dissies, 12 Blaster vs 12 Lances, 2 Blasters & 3 Blaster Pistols), but it has much more of an assault element, plus the 2 units starting with feel no pain and all the other having the protential to get it.
Both the old and new lists will be fun to play, and I will have to wait and see whether the extra assault power will offset the extra firepower that has been lost.
What The Future Holds
It will also be interesting to see what wargear I may have missed in the new codex that I will deem has to go into the list once I get my hands on the book. Also it will interesting whether the Scourges and/or Reavers will make it into the list after playtesting.
And Now Onto You
So what are your revised army lists looking like ? How many heavy weapons are you fitting in your list ? Has the Disintegrator disappeared from your lists ?
I'm particularly interested to know what you think the size of dark eldar army should be ? I am concerned that many dark eldar lists will be too small for how fragile they are - I hope to be proved wrong.
Rathstar
NB: After 6 tournaments this year with Tau, Should I take Dark Eldar to a potential last tournament of the year ? It's less than a month after the codex so it will use the old codex - who needs feel no pain when my dark lances open your tin cans and the disintegrators vaporise the occupants :)
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