Finished: 5 Eldar Rangers

I bought these back in 4th edition, right when they came out. The models are amazing, both detail and design is excellent.


Their camo cloaks was painted Scorched Brown, followed by a liberal application of Graveyard Earth. Kommando Khaki for the top layer + highlights, followed by a dash of Flesh Wash in the cloak's creases. Then i applied Gryphonne Sepia over the entire cloak to smooth the rather course layering I had done, and to matt down the Flesh Wash. Finally, I touched up the highlights again, and the cloaks were done.

The undersuit was overbrushed dark grey, the face painted plainly with rather light highlights.

The blue gems are painted almost like described in the Eldar Codex: Necron Abyss, Enchanted Blue, Ice Blue (or rather something similar i mixed up).

All in all, I'm pleased with the result. They are clearly camouflaged, but at the same time interesting to behold.

New Imperial Guard Codex = Better Witch Hunters?

Witch Hunters Penitent Engine
Originally uploaded by Xadhoom.

The Imperial Guard Codex is out in a few weeks, and a lot of folks have posted remarks on its high power level. How will this affect the Witch Hunter codex, when using allies from the Imperial Guard?

To include any of the juicier stuff, like Leman Russes and Sentinels, the Witch Hunters must include two Troops choices, either Imperial Guard platoons or Armored Fist squad. Seeing as the Armored Fist no longer exists, RAW (interpreting the Rule As Written) indicates that two platoons is the only way to go.

Fortunately, this can be both cheap in points and bolster your numbers quite nicely. Equip them with Autocannnons or Lascannons and place them out of harms way. The Battle Sisters should have Melta duty in Witch Hunter armies, the Guard should provide long range support.

Even though the Platoons somewhat mitigate the Witch Hunters' weaknesses, the other choices can do this even better. Sentinels, with their outflanking abilities, can give some much needed special movement options.

It is still unclear if the Witch Hunters can take the Sentinels, as their title in the codex have changed from "Sentinel Squadron" to "Recon Sentinel Squadron" and "Spearhead Sentinel Squadron".

Even more important is if the Inquisition can take the Leman Russ squadron, or only a single Russ, or whether they can take them at all. By RAW they probably can't but with some FAQ goodness, hopefully this will enable the Inquisitor to order three mighty battle tanks to fight against the witches, daemons and aliens out there.

Eldar Fire Dragons boxed set

Eldar Fire Dragons boxed set
Originally uploaded by Xadhoom.

I got these from my brother and sister for my birthday. Awsomeness right there!! Love you guys! :D

I plan to put them in my Falcon grav tank. Six Fire Dragons, with an Exarch with Dragon's Breath flamer and Crack Shot are the bane of tanks, monstrous creatures and heavy infantry alike. Incidentally, this is something I have struggled with in the past.

The Seer Council i have been using for the last few games are relegated to footslogging for the time being. Fortunately, they can take it, being fortuned and able to run and cast defensive Psychic Powers at the same time.

I'll probably get another Falcon. One Falcon with Fire Dragons, one Falcon with the Seer Council, and one Wave Serpent with whatever. There isn't much the opponent can do about this group of tanks when they come storming down the weaker flank of the board.

Battle Report: Eldar vs Tau

I played a game of 40k against my friend Norau a few days ago. He plays Tau, and I tried the Ulthwe list that I posted earlier.

Test video: Painting Eldar Rangers

This is just a test video taken with my Fujifilm S7000 digital camera on a tripod. The quality is so-so, but considering this was taken late in the evening with poor lighting, it's not too bad.

Hopefully, I will take some video from the game of 40k I'm playing tonight.

Music: Love and Wonder Club Mix by DJ Earworm

Khorne Berzerkers almost done

My 8-man strong unit of lobotomized Berzerkers only have some detail work remaining. I started with a coat of Chaos Black "primer", followed by liberal application of Mechrite Red foundation paint. On top of this I painted most areas of armour Blood Red, with a Blazing Orange highlight. The golden armour is simply Shining Gold.

The next step is final detailing and highlighting. Blazing Orange mixed with some yellow or white for the extreme highlights for the armour. A Burnished Gold and Mithril Silver mix for the gold detailing, and Mithril Silver for the metal highlights.

Finally, the eyepieces on the helmets will be painted Dark Angels Green with Snot Green and Skull White highlights.






More to come when they are finished.

Eldar :: Ulthwe

No Wraithlords allowed!
Originally uploaded by Xadhoom.

In the good, old days we had special rules for each of the five largest Craftworlds: Alaitoc, Biel Tan, Iyanden, Saim Hann and Ulthwe. Today, you can build armies representing all the Craftworlds from the same Codex, but even so the best lists are often very similar. All the armies are heavily mechanized, Guardians on foot are absent and Fire Dragons are the only anti-tank unit.

Is it possible to build an Ulthwe themed list that is competitive?

To make the list truly Ulthwe, I have defined the following set of rules:

1. No Aspect Warriors
2. No Wraiths
3. Only Farseer as HQ
4. At least one unit of Warlocks as the Seer Council
5. Only Guardians or vehicles driven by Guardians

Here is my attempt at approximately 1750 points:
HQ
Eldrad Ulthran
5 Warlocks (Embolden, Enhance, 2 Singing Spears, 3 Destructors)
Troops
10 Storm Guardians (2 Flamers), Warlock (Destructor) in a Wave Serpent (Twin Starcannons, Spirit Stones, Star Engines)
10 Guardians (Bright Lance), Warlock (Embolden)
10 Guardians (Bright Lance), Warlock (Embolden)
6 Jetbikes (2xShuriken Cannons), Warlock (Destructor)
Fast Attack
Vyper (Bright Lance)
Vyper (Bright Lance)
Heavy Support
Falcon (Eldar Missile Launcher, Holofield, Spirit Stones, Star Engines)
3 War Walkers (6xScatter Lasers)
2 D-Cannons

Tactics :: Objective mission
Eldrad and the Seer Council sits in the Falcon, driving close to the Wave Serpent with the Storm Guardians. Their task is to take out the least defended flank, forcing the opponent to send forces to deal with them. If they are not dealt with, the Guardians can even take an objective.

Two Fortuned Eldar-transports full of models capable of dealing with hordes, tanks, walkers and elite troops should make the opponent nervous. Remind the opponent that they can move 36" per turn, and that the Guardians are scoring, and he will not ignore them. They will most of the time draw extreme amounts of attention from the opponent, and should be able to contest one objective at the end of the game.

One of the Guardian squads should park in cover close to the single objective you wish to control at the end of the game. The D-Cannons should also be placed close by, preferably out of sight. Ideally, this objective is on either flank, not in the center of your board edge.

The other Guardian squad should be placed on the other flank, about 30" away, and in hard cover. If they are in a ruin, use multiple floors to mitigate the effects of any template weapons targetting them. Remember that the enemy can only target one floor with a single template. This squad will most likely be ignored by the enemy, seeing as it doesn't control an objective, and there are always juicier targets about. Use them to shoot at enemy transports or deep-striking units trying to get to your objective. Two Bright Lances and Two D-Cannons are a big threat in 5th, with the extreme focus on mechanization.

The Jetbikes should try to delay any troops going for the objective. Destructor and Shuriken Catapults are great against hordes. Don't forget that the Catapults are Twin-Linked. Shuriken Cannons can take out or delay light transports like Trukks, Rhinos or Chimeras. Get that side or rear armour! The Shuriken Cannon's 24" range + the 6" Assault Phase move should keep them out of close combat until it is safe to charge. Don't be afraid to charge walkers. The Warlock is more than capable of taking them out.

The Vypers should zoom about like irritating insects, sniping tanks and elite units like Terminators, Plague Marines, Immortals or Zoanthropes. Their Range will keep them safe most of the time. If nessecary, they can stay next to Eldrad for some Guide goodness. Remember to stay out of range of Bolters and Meltaguns. "Feel free to shoot my Vyper with your Lascannon, just as long as you don't target the Falcon/Wave Serpent." It is often better to sacrifice a turn of shooting in order to redeploy and get that 4+ cover save, rather than gamble on that 4+ to hit. If you stay in the open, you present a juicy target to the opponent. Many Lascannon shots can be wasted on a fast-moving Vyper!

War Walkers should Outflank, either supporting the flank where Eldrad and his boys are doing their thing, or to support the Jetbikes delaying forces trying to take the "home objective".

Tactics :: Kill points mission
Try to get the opponent to take first turn. Put all units in reserve. If this happens, the opponent only has three to five turns to kill your units, while you have four to six. At the same time, you're forcing the opponent to react to your reserves, entering play where needed or right into cover/out of sight.

Use cover religiously! This is twice as important with units that are easy to kill in one shot, like Vypers or D-Cannons. Go to ground if neccesary.

If you're ahead, do a full retreat. Hide in a corner, behind buildings or behind bushes. Get those cover saves. The Vypers should fly all over the place if it can keep them alive for one more turn. Winning by a single Kill Point is enough, there is no bonus for winning by tree.

Hordes will likely not have enough anti-tank to hancle two Fortuned Grav Tanks. Keep them moving for that invaluable cover save. Tank shock and drop four Destructor Templates and two Flamer Templates if you can safely eliminate a unit. Don't get charged. War Walkers can Outflank and stay at long range.

Versus Space Marines or similar armies, Rhinos are top priority. Take out one and hide/run away. Drop Pods are also easy to deal with if the reserve rolls are in my favour.

The worst that can happen is that the opponent forces you to take first turn, and all your units enter play in turn two, with the opponent's units enter right after. If this happens, spread out so he can't bunch up on the fragile Eldar. Assault Terminators are nothing to fear, as they will only take out a single unit at most. Taking out the opponent's transports and fast-moving assaulters will win the day for Craftworld Ulthwe.

Slaughter

8 Incubi versus my poor Sisters... All my nuns died, but the evil aliens felt the Emperor's fury the next turn, when Dreadnought crashed into them. Just three Incubi survived by fleeing the battlefield.

Faith in the Emperor!

After the first turn of firing

We killed a bunch of Dark Eldar, but was it enough?

Intro game @ 2500 points

Dark Eldar + Tau vs Space Marines + Witch Hunters. Video from my Sony Ericsson C902. Next time, I'll try to be a videocorrespondent with my Fujifilm S7000.
Hopefully, the quality will be better.