Eldar - Tactics and Ideas

[Primarch]

I thought so... full of win... but just a mountain of Cheez-wiz

Says the guy who thinks that comp scores are a waste of his time.

[Admiral-Badruck]

I like cheez doesn't every one... I the only reason I don't play more cheese is the look I would get... and it is a bit predictable...

[me_in_japan]

Well, who'd have thought people were so passionate about eldar?

First up, thank you to Voss and Prim for posting lists. Voss's list is the only one I have anything like the minis to try out, so I will do so at the first opportunity. Prim's list, while interesting, has so many minis in it that I dont have, we'll be unlikely to see it in action any time soon. (unless Pikey wants to contribute some minis?) If it's the same list Prim posted before (and i believe it is) Ive already commented at length about its pros and cons, but in summary, its big problems are: range and strength. Only the scatter lasers have a range longer than 24. And, although it has lots of S6 shots, it has nothing stronger than that, and no AP2 or power weapons. If someone turns up with meganobs or a battlewagon youve got nothing to take em down, other than massed fire, which you kinda need to be shooting at other stuff. Which is not to say its a terrible list. Its one Id be interested in trying, anyway.

I kinda disagree with Prim's comment:

Point I was getting at is that Dave is a very orthodox eldar player. I keep seeing the same units over and over. Suicide dragons, mobs of harlies etc.

In my defence, that's largely because you keep using space marines. We didnt take any dragons on sunday. If we had those meganobs would have been a lot less scary. Likewise, we used Scorpions on sunday for the first time in ages. The harleys were in there because theyre the only other eldar unit that can get 4 attacks on the charge. Personally, I also used a biker seer council for the first time ever. (only my second time ever with a seer council of any kind). My serpents had EMLs on em. I dont use war walkers that much, either. In fact, when you compare it to my marine killing army (banshees, Jain Zar, Wraithlord, reapers, small squad of harleys, Autarch on bike, coupla squads of avengers with a transport, fire dragons in Falcon, guardian bikers) the only things they had in common was the avengers and the guardian bikers. Hardly "the same units over and over again," is it?

Apart from the one game where you brought no aspect warriors, your list is generally fairly predictable.

Inasmuch as it tends to involve aspect warriors, yes. I dont complain about your blood angel army being full of space marines, do I?

I find that the big problem with playing orks is that they can field so many different threats. There are no "weeny" units (ok, grots, but...) You need to be able to take down AV14 battlewagons, and 2+Sv, 2W meganobs, and mobs of 30 boyz, and bikers that will be in your face in 2, and winkle the kommandos off the objectives, all the while dealing with the deffkopters coming to murder you. All at the same time. If ANY of them reach you, they will kill you.

Dave, you come across as being a tad negative about the whole thing.

Guilty, but if you'd had to play that game on sunday, you'd be feeling none too chirpy about the greenskins yourself. We had 4 highly mobile destructor templates, 8 pinning missile launchers, 1 large blast S5 template (or S9 AP2 blast), 20 of the meanest H2H troops available, and over 70 shuriken shots a turn. It's not like we didnt think about it beforehand. Yet, all for naught. Whupped in 3 turns.

Actually, in retrospect, the single biggest mistake we made (well, I made, actually. Wasnt Justin's fault) was keeping the council in reserve. I was worried about their fragility re. getting shot (I know...dumb...) and figured theyd come on roughly when they were needed to shore up holes in our defence. It's not like I assumed theyd come on quickly. I just assumed we'd still have an army for them to rescue when they did come on...430 points, down the swannee. Lesson learned there, methinks...

The are of war says "Know your enemy as you know yourself"
I think you did well to take the Battlewagon down... but this unit had a very big weak point it had to charge after the closest unit... I am sure you could have made that work for you..
You also overlooked the special rules for Snikrot.... You seemed very shocked to when he showed up on the long table edge... This means you were caught off guard... Can't let me or anyone for that matter do that to you most times it will be a game turner..

guilty as charged. I almost always read an opponent's codex before a game. This time i didnt. (hey, ive been trying to be a more fun gamer recenly, remember? that means being less anal about reading up on details. Man, did i get burned by that one...)

So, things I learned on Sunday:

Dont keep the council in reserve. Use em - they cost a lot of points.
Read up on the enemy codex beforehand. Properly.
Worry less about getting shot and more about doing the shooting.
Tanks. Do you really need em?

[Primarch]

Well, I've made my suggestions. Best of luck. I'll stick to armies I know from now on.

[Admiral-Badruck]

I am not sure about the tanks you certainly need tanks to move your guys around but I really did not see the point of the P-Cannon seemed a bit on the weak side

[me_in_japan]

I really did not see the point of the P-Cannon seemed a bit on the weak side

I'm not that sold on the P cannon, meself. On Sunday it only fired once, and missed by 12". Next turn it got blown up. Hardly an inspiring performance. But, on paper, its not bad: long range, S5 AP4 large blast or S9 AP2 small blast. Seems ideal for taking out orks, tbh. One to try again, I think...

[Colonel Voss]

Might want to consider the night spinner. for 115 pnts you get a 12-72" Str 6 heavy 1, barrage, large blast, rending, monofilament web.

because it is indirect fire, the center point of the blast is the center so it could lower the number of cover saves and the next time any unit hit moves for whatever reason, it counts as being in both difficult and dangerous terrain. vehicles included (ouch)

[Admiral-Badruck]

sounds harsh... I was sure it would be good and it looks not bad at all...

[me_in_japan]

I was considering the night spinner, but hadnt realised it was rending. Thats a fair point about the barrage rules, too (re. negation of cover). Hmmn. aye. i may have to invest in a couple of those spinner/prism kits. Worst case scenario, i end up with 3 prism cannon! (haha! apoc ahoy!)

[Admiral-Badruck]

TBH I am more afraid of them than I am of the Super heavies in you army...