New Eldar codex review

Well, well... a new Eldar codex is out. Hobby wise, I'm still going strong on the VIII legion. Ave Dominus Nox. But I am a long time, avid Eldar player. Time to dive in to a new codex. I'm not doing a full review of units like I did in 2013. Much of the Eldar is similar to our old (eh... 2013) codex. I'll focus on the changes.

The latest version of the game changed the way we make armies. Battle forged vs. Unbound, and within Battle forged; Combined arms, Allied, or.. other formations that would be made available. Like in codex's.

The main, new element to Codex Eldar Craftworlds is the formation. Craftworld Warhost. This optional organization revolves around the player choosing one core choice, and then unlocking the ability to choose up to 12 plus the HQ. Now, I don't have bikes yet (yes, the new models look cool) nor do I have enough Storm Guardians to make that chore choice. So I'll take the Guardian Battle Host.

Guardian Battle Host

You must take the following:

1 Farseer

3 Units of Guardian Defenders (may add a weapons platform for free)

1 Vyper Squadron

1 unit of Warwalkers

1 Vaul Wrath Support Battery

Warlock conclave is 0-1

Once you fullfill that, you may unlock the others. Like the Aspect Host and Dire Avenger Shrine. You do all this to get the Command Benefit for the Craftworld Warhost. Matchless Agility: Any unit with a model from this detachment runs 6in instead of rolling for a run roll. That's pretty sweet for how much I use Battle Focus. Plus, many auxiliary choices or mini-formations have their own, fairly powerful, rules. What do I lose by taking the Craftworld Warhost? Objective Secured. The Eldar command benefit is Matchless Agility not Objective Secured. Interesting...

There are 3 Regents of the Warhost choices, you may have 0-3 per Guardian Battle Host

Heroes of the Craftworld - 1 Autarch, Prince Yriel, Eldrad, or Illic

Seer Council - 2 Farseers + 1 Warlock Conclave (Eldrad is optional)

Living Legends - 1 Avatar, or Phoenix Lord

There are 7 Auxiliary choices, you may have 1-12 per Guardian Battle Host

Outcasts - 1 unit of Rangers, Aspect Host - 3 units (in any combination) of the Aspects, Crimson Death - 3 Crimson Hunters, Dire Avenger Shrine - 3 units of Dire Avengers, Engines of Vaul - 1 unit of Fire Prism, Falcons, or Night Spinners, Wraith Host - 1 Spiritseer 3 Wraithguard or Blades 1 Wraithlord 1 Wraithknight, Wraith Constructs - 1 Hemlock or Wraithlord or Wraithknight.

I'll just go over a couple, 

Aspect Host: Rites of Battle - after warlord trait choose either WS or BS, All units in this formation +1.  Shrinekeepers - models from this formation re-roll failed morale, pinning, and fear tests.

So, I could take Dark Reapers, Warp Spiders and Fire Dragons, as my host. They would all be BS 5 with the Exarchs at 6. Oh mama! Or 3 units of Dire Avengers all BS 5... 

But why do that when there is the Dire Avenger Shrine? - 3 Units of Dire Avengers, Killing Strike - once per game in the shooting phase they each fire +1 shot. Rites of the Avenger - all models in this formation add 1 to BS. Plus the Shrinekeeper rule. 

I can see the Aspect Host and Dire Avenger Shrine being the backbone of my Antaries army.

Although units cannot normally belong to more then one Detachment, units from a formation in the Craftworld Warhost are an exception. They count as being part of their formation and the Detachment so they have all associated Command Benefits and special rules.

So what got toned down? 

The Wave Serpent Shield. It now only fires once per game and then loses all benefits of the shield. That's tough. I never fired it much myself, but many on the internets used Serpent Shield spam.

The Scatter Laser no longer has the laser lock rule. It no longer twin links weapons. 

Warp Spiders have to choose, either use the warp jump in the movement phase or the jet pack jump in the assault phase. A slight nerf. But they can jump in the enemy shooting phase if they are targeted. A mixed bag.

The Holofield is now a +5 inv save. A worse save then the +1 to the cover save, but you don't jink to use it. Different, not better or worse.

What got better?

Wraithcannons, D-Cannons, any "distort" weapon is now ST D. That's pretty nasty. But, I noticed Wraithguard are not easy to get into your Craftworld Warhost. I will have to put them in a Combined Arms detachment if I want to use them as your only option in the Craftworld Warhost is the Wraith Host.

Pretty much all the Aspects. Banshee masks, a model wearing a mask causes Fear and enemy may not Overwatch against the unit! I think I might have to make an Autarch with one...

The book itself is bigger, 160 pages. With some lovely art and pictures.

The Harlequins are gone from the book. 

I'm not much of a jetbike player so I found the model release weak.

The Farseer is awesome. Once per psychic phase may reroll any dice in a psychic test or deny the witch. Wow! Eldar may not summon Daemons, good that was just silly.

We'll see what happens when I get some games in. The Craftworld Warhost looks tough.

Big Game 2015

D-Company held it's annual Big Game this past weekend. We rent a large hall and have a gaming weekend. Every year members volunteer to run it. This year was my turn along with Mark http://excursionsbeyondthecall.blogspot.com/  Friday involves setting up the board and then playing some small games of 40k, 1500-2000 point games. My Night Lords were beat badly by AJ's Necrons, wiped from the table in turn 5. Ouch. The Orks played a game Friday against each other  to determine their warboss.

A view from the fortress side.

Saturdays game involved 20,000 points of Orks by 4 players. The Imperials featured 8 players and 44,000 points. Chaos and friends tallied 8 players and 48,000 points being Chaos, Eldar, Necrons, and Tyranids. 20 players and 112,000 points.



I divided the game into 3 theaters of battle. In the fortress 3 Chaos players fought 1 Imperial, while the Orks tunneled up from below. The Orks would turn on the  Chaos players when an animosity level was reached. The second involved 2 Imperials and 3 Chaos (though one chaos player fought in both the fortress and the road outside) this took place around the Shield Generator and the Ammo depot. Finally the third featured 5 Imperials vs. 3 Chaos down at the beginning of the road.

Iron Warriors smash down the walls.

One of the things I was very happy with was that the 3 theaters all stayed close to each other in the phases of each turn. I think it is wise to divide the overall battle in a game this big. Certain areas bog down, that's the way games of this size go. D-Company has hosted some 11 of these now. I think we have learned quite a bit in that time. I chose to manage my conflicts by assigning the players missions whose goals directly conflicted with enemy players. We also tried to spin a good storyline for the players. They each received information packets tailored to them.

A look from the city end of the board.

The Orks come up from giant holes in the ground!

Er we go dat way!

Chaos surrounded by.... friends?

Apparently Necrons can even move terrain...

The Orks are everywhere in the fortress.

Necrons approve of the way the battle goes in the city.

Imperials struggle to break the blockade.

Eric and Theo plan their next move.

The Imperials hold strong in the Shield Generator complex.

More Orks.

The front lines of the city fight.

Word Bearers move the Tyranid pheromone.

In the end it looked as though people had a good time. I was happy with how it went. You can't plan for everything, just hope you've set up an entertaining game. I wonder if the two structures restricting deepstrike were too powerful, I wish Chaos would have been deeper into the fortress when the Orks turned on them. But, for the most part, people embraced their missions and had plenty of action. I'm pleased with how it turned out.

Sevatar!

So Sevatar is up for preorder. I bought him and 3 sets of Night Lords Rhino doors. He is one of the coolest characters I've read in the Horus Heresy book series. By the way, I'm reading Vengeful Spirit by Graham McNeil right now.

So the Prince of Crows..  First Captain of the Night Lords, considered one of the finest close combat fighters in all the legions. Also really enjoyable to read about.

"Malithos looked at his brothers in raw disbelief for a moment, before tilting his head at the first captain ' Are you mad, Sevatar?'


'No I feel fine'

'How would you try to stop us?' asked Var Jahan

'I'd kill you of course. What kind of question is that? But lets hope it doesn't reach that point. Emotions run high, and my spear is all the way over there.'

I'll use him as a chaos lord or sorcerer in 40k, I do plan a 30k Night Lord force..

A last thought on his storyline, Sevatar is not dead yet in the HH storyline, though his primarch has said he will die in battle. Heh, not much of a clue there, I think there maybe a clue in the picture above. Notice the White Scar at his base, my guess is Sevatar meets his end at the battle of terra. He talks in the story of going there after the Thramas Crusade. I don't buy the theory that he his one of the first Grey Knights. If you read his stories, he is VIII to his core. Much like Talos. Much like Talos I think his author will kill him. Though I doubt it will be Jain Zar, the Banshee Phoenix lord, who kills Sevatar.

It's a very cool looking model, I look forward to painting it.

Atramentar Finished

We have come for you.

Ahhhh finished, my lovely Atramentar. For those not familiar with Night Lord lore, those would be the elite body guard of the lord.

They are well armed, 4 combi-meltas a reaper auto cannon and of course the champion has twin lightning claws. There are also 2 chainfists and a powerfist. They pack a pretty good punch. I'm happy with how they turned out. Chaos Terminators are a lovely kit. But a real effort to paint. So much little detail in the models...

Now that these guys are done, I think I might move on to something easier like the 6 man Havoc squad. This army is really starting to come together, dare I say they may end up looking better then my Eldar.. I look forward to getting at least 1500pts painted by next month's Big Game. Until my next post...

Ave Dominus Nox.

Happy New Year

Awesome Book!

I've been busy planning the D-Company Big Game, finishing another semester of school, life flies by sometimes. Santa was kind, bringing me Imperial Armor 13. It's a must have for any Chaos player. Game wise, I've played about 5 games since I last posted. Though I tried to not play Night Lords till they were painted, I couldn't resist getting my hands dirty. I'm still feeling things out going 2-3. It's about finding that balance of weapons, I've already bought a 3rd rhino for my troops. The 10 man Raptor squad is modeled and ready to be primed. Paint wise I'm working on the last three Terminators. So many little details on the Chaos Terminator models... I'm looking forward to some easier models as next on my list are the Havocs and the 3rd troop squad.

Planning a large battle- For those who have never tried, running a large event takes a lot of effort. The Big Game is our gaming groups main event of the year. Players come from out of state to play so there is plenty of pressure to make sure it is a game that is well planned out. There will be about 15 players on a large board that numbers 12 tables at least 4 x 6 each.

The kind of game I've always wanted to play involves each player having their own objectives, I feel there is more individual joy in playing your own little small part in a larger battle.

We aren't using Apocalypse rules. I feel 7th edition gives us players a good enough template of force organization. The players are allowed 5000pts. Battleforged or Unbound. The ability to add detachments basically means one can reach 5000pts. pretty easily. The players are allowed formations and superheavy units.

There are two structures restricting units from entering the table. A com tower controlling a drone network that, while active, prevents all physical entry by air to the table. So Flyers, jump packs, wings. The shield generator stops all forms of teleportation or summoning. Examples being Terminators, Warp Spiders, or Daemons. Certain players will have to control these objectives before those units may enter the game.

Besides assigning missions, a GM must make sure the sides have relative balance. Placing the players on the overall table so that they are not severely disadvantaged by distance needed to travel or too many enemy commanders near by.

Each player will get a primary, secondary, overall team mission, plus a secret extra credit mission. They will receive general intel into their specific placement on the board and their missions. On the day before the game they will get their full mission packet. Only then will they specifically know how they will be judged.

This isn't an objective game or a game that will be counted by "points" When the game ends, Mark, who is helping develop the Big Game with me, and myself will judge each player on how well they performed in achieving their missions.

My thoughts on Imperial Armor 13- As I said above I think it's a must have for any Chaos player. Along with plenty of Horus Heresy vehicles there are Greater Daemons, rules for cool vehicle upgrades such as being a vet. of the Siege of Vraks... As I really want a Night Lords Contemptor Dreadnaught, there are now rules to use it in 40k, which is great. The Renegades and Heretics army list has some quirkiness to it's rules but on the whole a fantastic book.

Back to work. I'm building terrain, painting, all the while working on Night Lords. I'll try to have more frequent posts with what I'm up to. Happy New Year gamers.

These are the rumors I love to see!

http://www.belloflostsouls.net/2014/10/breaking-next-primarch-revealed.html

via http://battlebunnies.blogspot.com/


Ohhh I can see myself buying both! Curze and Sevatar... drools...

Sevatar!

Oh Forgeworld, you vile temptress... And the man, the myth, the legend.....

Konrad Curze

I wonder what his base looks like, sadly Mercy and Forgiveness (his claws) look a little underwhelming. Still, overall he looks fantastic! 

Asdrubael Vect, troubling.

I love the Dark Eldar.

They were my first, the army I learned the game on. I guess that 3rd edition package with DE and Marines paid off. The guys who introduced me to 40k all played Marines, so I chose Dark Eldar. I loved their sinister persona and embraced it as I played. My long time friends know, on a +4 you were coming home with me. (early Dark Eldar had a prisoner rule, roll a dice when a unit was wiped out and on a +4 roll the unit was/were prisoners taken back to Commorragh.) Ha! my friend Tim even made a menial labor guard army that took all the glory away. On purpose I think... Good times. 

Give me a model!

Like any army, I delve into the rich story line that Games Workshop does right. At the top of the Dark Eldar story has been and always will be Asdrubael Vect. The Torturers Tale by Gav Thorpe was the first story I'd read. It was really good, a poor guardsman sat and listened to Vect tell the tale of the fall of the Eldar and how the dark kin survived. It was a great little read, I'm sad to report I tried to find a link to the story but all seem not to work. Anyway, it was the first real good piece of fluff.

Fast forward to the next codex, came the story The Rise of Vect. It was all a long time druchii fan could hope for. I thought the story of the Dark Eldar hit a new all time high. Gone was my beloved prisoner rule (damn it GW! I didn't even care about the victory point..) but overall I was very pleased. I used Vect very little as the years advanced, only on special occasions. I still have the slave models, unpainted. But he was the apex of DE models, an Abaddon or Eldrad.

Asdrubael Vect is not in the new codex. What?What? WHAT? Many internet sources report the same troubling news. Gone, for good? I dunno, maybe he shows up in a supplement.

I don't like the direction GW is taking with special characters. It seems they are being reduced in every codex that is now coming out. What I have read on the internets says it's due to lawyers and lawsuits and such. As a veteran gamer of 14 years, I've always considered SC's a chance to flex some conversion muscle. Games Workshop makes money off me because I buy models. I'll buy GW troops, heavies, elites, fast. sure. Even most of the HQ's But often, shhhhhh. I go outside GW and use models from another company as a SC, especially one with no  model. No amount of lawyer battles will stop me. All this removing beloved SC's will do is upset 40k's loyal base. We still buy most of your stuff, GW.

Control your brand GW, but don't forget who really gives you your profits. It's your veteran base. We are the ones who buy Forgeworld, read Black Library, and like to convert mini's. Removing the driving force (fluff wise) and greatest of the Dark Eldar was a big mistake. If he is hidden in some future supplement? He better be a new model and he better be fucking awesome. Commorragh is rumbling deeply right now.