Casting The Storm- Epically

 

As promised, my Knight Venator. I couldn't get the white wings to look right, so I tried purple, which became pink as I highlighted, so now I have the above result. I don't really mind the outcome.

My Canadian mail order arrived as well. Above are the results of the assembly, including a pair of conversions. Unfortunately I forgot to take separate pictures of them, so I'll throw some up ASAP. You may have noticed some little dudes in the top right corner as well...

 Yep, my lazy butt finally got around to starting the process of painting my Epic Dark Eldar. These minis look good as bare metal, but only improve with a lick or two of paint. Links and closeups will be added later.

That's it for now. Hopefully more and better content coming soon.

Evil Grows Just a Little More

Yep, it's another Archon for my Dark Eldar. I didn't have one with a Huskblade, and AP 2 + Instant Death are nice, so here he is. I really didn't paint him today for any particular reason, it just finally got to me seeing him there in my case unpainted. Now if only the bug will get in me to paint up that last Raider...

It's Been A Long Time...

...Since I could whip out the ol' Dark Eldar tag. That's right, I'm inching a bit more toward completion with my Trueborn with Splinter Cannons. I'm actually shocked that I can get anywhere close to the scheme I've been using, but I suppose it's so thoroughly drilled into me I just couldn't forget it if I wanted to.

So, without further ado, here's what you've been waiting for!

The bronze is a bit brighter than the rest of my army (the old pot of Citadel paint I was using dried up, and the Vallejo version doesn't match) but they really shouldn't be too distinguishable from the rest of the army on the table.

Now to try and convince myself to finish painting that Raider...

And to get that Razorwing...

And to buy some Daemons- The new book is awesome sauce when taken as an ally.

Anybody know someone who wants a ton of AT-43 stuff cheap? I didn't think so.

Looking Toward 6th Edition

Not my plane. Taken from glaven.net.

Well, 6th edition 40k is here, and people are extolling its virtues left and right. Pre-measuring is in, fliers fly, and you can shoot at charging enemies. All that sounds cool and all, but what does it mean for my Dark Eldar?

I've been doing some pondering, and it has led me to a few conclusions.

First of all, I am afraid of fliers. Only being able to use snap fire to engage areal threats with my current army just seems a little sub-optimal. I'd have to dedicate pretty much every lance in my army to taking the thing down, and that seems like a bad idea. The alternative is to totally disregard the threat, which seems like a worse idea. Because of this it seems that one of my Ravagers will have to be removed from my army in favor of... Well, if you paid attention to the image up top it's pretty obvious- a Razorwing. I'm not quite sure as to the exact configuration of its weapons (do I go with a Splinter Cannon or a Night Shield?) but I am sure that I need a flier. Especially with a Stormraven kicking around Demitra's home somewhere.
Yes, I could use an Aegis Defense Line, but that's just so.. un-fluffy. I may not be a fluff Nazi, but I'm not going to go that far.

Second is that Dark Eldar were, have been, and always will be a harassing, evasive, mechanized army. I've seen players attempt to run their armies on foot, and that's just not going to work. They're fragile in melee, and now that they've lost the ability to run a true Webway Portal army to save them once they get up close, they need to play keep-away even more. I knew I was getting into a finesse army when I started buying these models, and I'm not upset that we remain fragile. It's the Dark Eldar thing. I'm a tiny bit miffed that they can be glanced out of the air now, but it's not all that far of from the days of 3rd and 4th edition where a glancing 6 would knock your transports out of the sky. Sure, now it's pretty much a given that small arms fire will knock your ride down, but you can pre-measure distances now, and with that up your sleeve you should be able to keep the enemy at arm's length until you swoop in for the killing blow.
This is not a Footdar army. We don't have Aspect Warriors to save our infantry (who have bad armor saves and poor leadership). Sure there are some backups (Beast packs, Grotesques), but they cannot be relied on. Keep moving, and if a squad gets downed, leave it for dead. Keep in the Dark Eldar mindset- kill them all, those too weak to survive are just as well dead.

Finally, and related to my last thought is this; table your opponent. You want him to have no models left on the board at the end of the game. This assures you a win, and is really quite fluffy. Ignore those silly objectives. You're here to inflict as much pain as possible. Do it.

Any way, those are my thoughts on how Dark Eldar will transition to 6th edition. I;m sure that there are much more wizened generals that myself who will cry foul at my tactics, and I will admit that this is based entirely on my loose understanding as to how the new 40k works. For now however I will focus on running my army throughout these last few months of 5th edition that Demitra and I will play.

Maybe Dust Warfare too.

Two Armies Near Completion

That's right, it's just a matter of time. I've nearly completed two armies, and it just feels so good!

Note the "Coming Attractions" sidebar. It's gotten quite a bit smaller. At least until I get that SSU stuff, any way. I'm getting closer and closer to the finish line as far as my Dark Eldar and Space Wolves are concerned. Now I'm at the mercy of the weather as far as matte varnishing the minis is concerned. Monday will see me cracking down and putting the brush back to that last eyesore Raider. You see it there. The one that's still mostly primer. The one I kind of highlighted there. It's driving me nuts, all sitting there in my display case mocking me. It will be put in its place! I will make it pretty!

...Then there's the matter of the Splinter Cannon armed Trueborn. Those three jokers aren't even primed yet. No, I must focus on one effort at a time!

The above army was fielded against Demitra on Tuesday. While it still has the Blaster armed Trueborn, I did drop the Splinterborn, a unit of Kabalite Warriors, and a Venom from the list in order to accommodate an Archon and her Incubus bodyguard. They performed somewhat under par, charging a Blood Angel Tactical Squad and getting wiped out (well, except the Archon- she failed her first Shadowfield save and then annihilated the unit) to a man. All in all this proved to be the most entertaining game Demitra and I played with me using my Dark Eldar.

As far as actual painting progress is concerned, Behold! Today was dedicated to painting up my Land Raider Crusader. It started the day basecoated and washed, and hopefully it'll be dullcoted soon enough.

I also painted up my Wolf Priest, two Lone Wolves, and got a touch further on my Grey Hunters. You'll have to wait to see them though, as I have company coming over soonish.

Now, back to sweeping...

Hooray.

First Post From My iPhone

I'm trying something new tonight. I just finished my last squad of Kabalite Warriors, and for reasons beyond my control, I don't have access to my computer. I'm therefore trying out the functions on my phone.

The picture looks a little dark, but it's not too horrible. This spells the end of my painting infantry for a while. Now it's on to painting my last Raider!

Final Ravager Finalized

That's right, I'm done painting Ravagers. This one, as stated before, was a chore. At least it's over and done with. You may have noticed the sort of "crown of thorns" around the vehicle. It's a sharp and pokey as it looks. More than once I had to put the model down because it was becoming uncomfortable to hold. In the end, however, it came out looking pretty spiffy, so it was totally worth it.

I'm hoping to start the five Kabalite Warriors. I may or may not get through them today (having Fridays off really helps me get my painting done).

Tonight I'm running my sister through either a game of MalifauX or Warmachine. The gaming virus within my family grows stronger! I was really surprised when she texted me asking if I was willing to run her through an intro. I will have to brush up on my MalifauX rules should she decide that's what she's into, but I still have most of the rules down. I think I'll just need a quick reference sheet. We'll see how tonight goes. Hopefully I'll have a new opponent some time soon.

More Ravager Progress

Well, I finished the Jade Green layer and the Foul Green highlights. Tomorrow will see the highlights on the black panels at the least, maybe even the completion of the mini (depending on humidity). It's getting more and more encouraging to look at the end of the road as far as this army is concerned. What's next? Maybe the last five Kabalite Warriors. They've been sitting there longing for some love for a while. We'll see.

Minor Update- Ravager In Progress

Not much on the painting front to report today. I've put the first coat down on the last of my Ravagers, and it feels good to be on the final one of these nightmares. Let me tell you, reaching around all these corners is a gigantic pain. I know what you're thinking, "just save the final assembly for after you've finished painting the component pieces." That's not really an option. The sponsons need to be securely glued in place, and that means model cement. Model cement doesn't melt spraypaint so well, and I need to prime the underside of the model as well.

I also missed a couple of places with the primer, and that had to be rectified with some quick Chaos Black touchups. Luckily they were on inside surfaces that will never get touched.

Oh, hey, Demitra- I need to buy some Scurf Green the next time you place a mail order, as my bottle is almost out. Just give me a heads up the next time and I'll give you a few dollars.

More Forward Progress- Raider and Trueborn

Well, yet another vehicle done and dusted. This time I got one of the Raiders that will be transporting around my Wyches. The difference between this one and the one for my big squads of Kabalite Warriors is small, but noteworthy. The rune on the sail has been replaced with what I can only assume is a Wych cult symbol- a hand holding a barbed whip against a red field. Since my warriors all have a red tube going over their left shoulder and red eyes, I figured the transfer wouldn't clash too badly with the color scheme. I may have been mistaken. The red against the purple field just isn't doing it for me. I may paint over the transfer and use another one on one of the prow plates on both sides. I don't think the transfers clash as much on that color.

That wasn't the only boo-boo on this model. For some reason Games Workshop saw fit to have two of the engines on the back of the model be attached by a ball and socket joint. This led to the above messed up engine (it's the one on the left, circled in red). It probably won't be all that noticable on the table, but it bothers me. I wish there was some way to fix it, but once the plastic cement I use dries, it's basically impossible to pry the model back apart. Usually this is a good thing, but in this case... Not so much.

That's not all of the progress I've made over the last few days. Behold my second squad of Blaster armed Trueborn! I think these shredder-to-blaster conversions came out pretty well. It's nice to have the two different Trueborn squads toting different styles of Blaster on the two squads. This way if an opponent asks how they can distinguish between the two squads, I can just point to the Blasters. With this squad complete, I can now refocus my attention on the last Ravager. I'm really not looking forward to painting it, but once it's done I'll be nearly finished painting this army.

In other, related news, the order I placed from the Bitz Barn arrived yesterday. This leaves me with my final Trueborn squad (two with Splinter Cannons, one with a Splinter Rifle) fully assembled. That's right, I now have every last infantry model this army needs. I say "needs" because at some point I intend to add a pair of Wrack squads to my collection if only to break up the monotony of fielding nothing but Warriors and Trueborn. Incubi will also be an option, but I want to come out of the gate swinging. This may not be the "optimal" netlist, but it's very strong. I intend to learn the army with the best possible loadout in order to maximize my likelihood of winning, and thus be less likely to get discouraged with the army.

Unfortunately I'm out of Chaos Black spraypaint now. I know I could just get another, cheaper brand, but I don't want to have varied "textures" of paint between squads. This should be the last time I give GW money for paint for a while, and it should last through the painting of all the rest of my minis I intend to add to this army. Baron Sathonyx, 4 Beastmasters, 10 Khymerae, 10 Wracks, and 4 more Venoms (two for the Warriors, and two painted up for the Wracks). Oh, I also have two swarms of Razorwings made out of old metal Vampire Counts Bat Swarms. I like the minis more, as:

1. They're less expensive. $15 for two bases, whereas the real minis are $12.25 a pop.
2. They're made of metal. I really don't like the flexiness (is that a word?) of Finecast resin.
3. They're not on flight stands. I can't stand those things. Odd for a person who's doing an entire army of floating vehicles, but there it is.

Next time I'll have my last Raider to show off (probably Friday or Saturday). Hold on to your hats, folks. I almost have an entire army painted (again), and this one's not dipped!

One More Ravager (And More)

There's one thing that has remained consistent about my Dark Eldar army- it will have three Ravagers. To that end, I finished painting another today. I kind of had to trudge through this one, so I think I'll treat myself to something. I'm kind of torn between the second Blasterborn squad and the slave girls. I think I'll roll a die to choose between the two. I 1-3 gets me the Trueborn, a 4-6 means I'll go with the objective markers. Well, off to determine my destiny!

 UPDATE
I rolled a 4. That means I painted up the slave girls I had laying around in my bits bag. They're appropriate objective markers for a slave raiding army, I think. I painted them up to have the same purple cloth as the rest of my army. Next I'll be starting on a Raider for my Wyches.

Blasterization Or Splinter Cannonization

Like all Dark Eldar players, I need more of these.

I'm torn as to how or if to go about obtaining my ninth Blaster. Do I order a Dark Lance for $3-6 depending on the source, or do I just suck it up and buy another squad of Kabalite Warriors, giving me all six squads I'd need to run the Venom Spam list I swore I'd never consider (and still hold fast against fielding)? The internal debate, as always, rages. On one hand, I could just go for it and scoop up the Warriors, giving me more troops and saving me money in the long run, or I could just plunk down the few dollars (plus shipping) it's cost for the Dark Lance / Shredder. I also have been kicking around the idea of dropping one of the Blasterborn units in exchange for three Trueborn with two Splinter Cannons. That would put me firmly in the "buy another squad" camp. Or else it would put me in the "try to buy just one more Kabalite Warrior from somebody" camp. It would also add some more anti-infantry firepower to my force, which may very well be needed. Finally, it would take me one step further away from a true netlist. I've been pondering enemies like Imperial Guard Blobs (three squads with a Commissar and four Power Weapons formed into a single unit) and swarm Orks / Tyranids. Perhaps yet more bullets would work better than just covering the field with anti-armor. I think 23 Strength 8 Lance shots will work over most armored enemies...

Feel free to ignore the rest of this post, unless you're interested in yet another potential list.

HQ
2 Haemonculi w/ Liquifier Guns- 120 pts.

ELITES
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 2 Splinter Cannons; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 121 pts.
4 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 4 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 173 pts.
4 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 4 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 173 pts.

TROOPS
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
9 Wyches w/ Haywire Grenades; Hekatrix w/ Agoniser; Raider w/ Flickerfield- 208 pts.
9 Wyches w/ Haywire Grenades; Hekatrix w/ Agoniser; Raider w/ Flickerfield- 208 pts.

HEAVY SUPPORT
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.

TOTAL
1,848 pts.


Yet a more well rounded force? I like the idea of the Trueborn on the Venom cranking out (together with their ride) anywhere from 12-26 shots per turn depending on how fast they move and how close they are to their target. I do lose the Shardnet & Impaler on the Wych squads, which were there to heplp minimize damage taken from enemy close combat specialists (it's really funny taking a Dreadnought down to one attack) so they'll be more cautious about going after Power Weapon armed units as they'll take away the squad's Feel No Pain. That'll take them from shrugging off 75% of the wounds inflicted on them to only 50%. That's a pretty substantial loss. Hopefully Combat Drugs will help take care of that (as long as I don't roll a less than stellar "1" on the table).

Well, that's it for today's list revision. Hopefully I'll come to a decision (and finish painting my army) soon.

UPDATE: I went ahead and ordered one more Warrior from the Bitz Barn. He was only $6 delivered, so I figured why not just finish off the squad? Looks like the above list is where I'm headed. I like that it's re-tweaked from a netlist, and seems like it'll play better on the table. I only lose one Blaster as compared to the previous list, and I'm now able to lay down a lot more fire. All good as far as I can see.

Bad Vassal

Well, I folded. I threw together my Dark Eldar in a few days. I know, build one, paint one was the mantra, but there's so little there it'll be tough to get overwhelmed by the volume of stuff left.  Having finished assembling and basing the minis, I took them outside to prime them.

Over the next few days, I painted up one of the Venoms, five Kabalite Warriors, and four of the Blasterborn.

I'm most pleased with how the Trueborn came out. I decided to add bronze accents to the shoulderpads and kneepads. The Blaster-ized Dark Lances came out better than expected. I'm really a fan of the heavier look of the weapons. I wonder how the converted Shredders will look fully painted?

Next, however, it's time for a Ravager. They're the most annoying minis in my army, so I may as well get them out of the way now.

Bye-Bye Baron

Well, Baron Sathonyx is out. The main reasoning behind this is that he and his unit are just too dang expensive to build (for now). I already have a second Haemonculus and another squad of Wyches. My Trueborn are well and truly in progress now, all I need to finish this army are a pair of Venoms and a Blaster / Shredder / Dark Lance with which to arm my ninth Trueborn.

I've been going through a lot of variations on this same list, and it's been evolving constantly by listening to and reading the advice listed on the internet. This list returns to my older army list ideas, with another Wych squad in place of the Beastmasters. I decided that losing that sixth Troops choice just wasn't worth it, as if I really need to go after objectives 38 infantry is a lot better than 29 pairs of scoring boots on the ground. This army is also farther from the list I ranted about a few days ago.

Of course, as with any real Dark Eldar list, the true objective is to table my opponent, but starting out I'll just go with good ol' fashioned scoring.

That reminds me- I need to put together some objective markers for this army. I wonder if I have enough slave girl minis to use?

HQ
2 Haemonculi w/ Liquifier Guns- 120 pts.

ELITES
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.

TROOPS
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
9 Wyches w/ Haywire Grenades, Shardnet & Impaler; Hekatrix w/ Agoniser; Raider w/ Flickerfield, Shock Prow- 223 pts.
9 Wyches w/ Haywire Grenades, Shardnet & Impaler; Hekatrix w/ Agoniser; Raider w/ Flickerfield, Shock Prow- 223 pts.

HEAVY SUPPORT
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.

TOTAL
1,849 pts.

More Troops, less netlisting. It also looks more flexible. Me likey.

Spammy Davis Jr.

I know I said I'd never run a spam list, and I still intend not to, but I found a less spammy list over on "They Shall Know Fear", and I sort of liked it (as it still included a Haemonculus and Wyches) so I decided to tweak it a little and see if I could improve on it- having never played a game with my Dark Eldar, of course. I like the results, as much as one can like a Venom Spam inspired list...

HQ
Baron Sathonyx- 105 pts.
Haemonculus w/ Liquifier Gun, Shattershard- 75 pts.

ELITE
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.

TROOPS
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
9 Wyches w/ Haywire Grenades, Shardnet & Impaler; Hekatrix w/ Agoniser; Raider w/ Flickerfield- 218 pts.

FAST ATTACK
4 Beastmasters; 6 Khymerae; 3 Razorwing Flocks- 165 pts.

HEAVY SUPPORT
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.

TOTAL
1,846 pts.

As one would expect, the Haemonculus rides along with the 9 Wyches in order to provide them with a Pain Token, thus giving the unit a 75% chance of shrugging off any non-Power Weapon wound suffered in hand-to-hand combat. They've still got a 4+ Invulnerable save in melee, which makes them rather annoying opponents despite only being Toughness 3. The Baron, of course, joins the Beastmasters for the same reasons outlined in this article. Those beasties get NASTY with him hanging around.

This list has a couple of downsides, both pertaining to it's resiliance. First off, there are now only 3 Blasterborn per squad. This turns an already frail squad into absolute tissue paper. One good volley and they're toast. The second reason is that they now only have five Troops choices. This rather reduces their ability to claim objectives, especially since I now rely on four squads of Toughness 3, 5+ save warriors and their paper airplanes to squat on them.

This list appeals as it has some rather serious flaws (making it more challenging to play than pure Venom Spam), and all it would take are a few more minis in order to fill it out. Yeah, it looks like those Incubi are fading further and further into obscourity before they even hit the table...

Of course, I'll need to try out other lists before I remodel my army completely, but we shall see what we shall see, no?

I'm really into the idea of making a bunch of conversions for this army, and the Beastmasters and Baron look like perfect opportunities. I'll go into how to convert them in a later article (once I'm done collecting bits).

Less Spam, more appealing.

Dark Eldar: Looking Into the Future

Well, I recieved a bonus check today at my job, and I, like a good little addict, am trying to decide what "plastic crack" I'm going to spend my money on. Right now (after the current shipment, of course) I'm looking at the following:

- One more box of Kabalite Warriors (to make two more five-warrior squads and one last Blaster for my Trueborn).

- A box of Crypt Ghouls and a box of Empire Flagellants from which to convert my two units of five Wracks. Also ten 25mm round bases to base them for 40k.

- Four more Venoms (one for each five strong squad listed above).

-A box of Scourges to convert into Baron Sathonyx and four Beastmasters.

-A box of Dire Wolves and a box of Hormagaunts to make Khymerae from. I'll also need some 40mm round bases for these suckers. Ten total.

-A blister of Bat Swarms to turn into three Razorwing Flocks. Also another three 40mm round bases.

That's another fairly hefty order. Luckily I'm picking up some extra hours at work this week to help cover the expense (should be worth about $70 extra). That plus my little bonus will help put quite a dent in the forthcoming bill.

I find myself in a bit of a conundrum, however. Do I put the money towards more minis, or do I put it toward that Battlefoam bag I've been longing for? Hmm... The internal debate rages.

Miniature Market Shipment Arrival

This arrived while I was out. Luckily someone was home at the time to accept the shipment. Inside is the remainder of my Dark Eldar army. After snapping this photo, out came my X-Acto knife and I began slicing up the tape. Inside was quite a surprise...

This does not look like the can of Chaos Black spray paint I asked for. With trepidation I continued unpacking the rest of my order.

After sifting through the copious volume of Styrofoam peanuts I dug out my order. Looked like everything was there, so I double checked everything.

Everything seems to be present and accounted for. 2 Raiders, 2 Ravagers, 2 Kabalite Warriors, and a Venom. So despite the one foul up I think everything came through okay. In the end this ordering experience was not up to par with the War Store (I was really clear that I wanted spray paint, not a paint pot) but the price is right. This one gets 4/5 stars. I'm pretty miffed about the botched paint, but at least they didn't charge me for spraypaint and then send a paint pot.

Blasters? Blasters!

Well, I found another way to make blasters (aside from barrel swaps on Shredders). I am going to flagrantly steal this idea from Synaps3 (second picture down). I have no need for foot Dark Lances in my army, so I'll just hack off the barrel and make them into "Blasters". That gives me four more Blasters to field, and ups my total Blaster count to 12 (when I use all of them). All told, that's an army with 25 darklight weapons, and a very short lived enemy parking lot. Swarms? 10 Splinter Cannons. Still not Venom Spam, but that's about as close as I'm willing to get to the concept.

Tomorrow's the big day, as my package from the Miniature Market is supposed to arrive. So far their customer service (as far as I can tell) is on par with the War Store. It's really the packing around the shipment that'll tell the final story. If things are busted, that's a big thumbs down. Not that I'm wanting to find anything amiss, but if I do find anything I'll have to very carefully consider my purchases in the future. This crap is expensive, and I don't want anything busted.

Heck, no matter what I'm going to consider my purchases carefully from now on. 5% is a big difference in price when you're ordering hundreds of dollars worth of merchandise, and in that category the Miniature Market has the War Store beat hands down.

We'll see what arises tomorrow, and as per Demitra's request I'll post pictures of the packages both when they arrive and as I unpack them. Pending my approval they may be getting my business again come a few months from now.

Wat Teh Interwebz Sez

Well, a few posts ago I threw up a list that eliminated my Incubi in favor of more Trueborn with Blasters. Let me reassure you, this isn't going to happen (any time soon). The Incubi are safe in their current position running alongside the unit of Blasterborn. As I said before, I love Incubi, and I want them in my army. I want to figure out how to use them. I want to see if I can get these guys to perform, and I believe that when utilized with surgical precision they can be devastating as they're a small elite unit that will tear other small elite units to shreds. They have a high initiative, two attacks each, and they all carry Strength 4 Klaives (which are power weapons). Honor Guard? Goodbye. Sternguard Vetarans? Toast.  Plague Marines? A tall order, but on the charge I see them doing their fair share of damage.

It's all a matter (as the rest of 40k is) of lining up the right matchups for them. As long as they get the jump on their opponents (and they will as long as they have their ride) they should do fine. If they get stuck in with a tarpit unit or a walker they're toast. If they get their Venom taken out it'll be tough to keep them from getting charged, especially by Assault Marines and their ilk. What I'm getting at is that they need to be handled like the glass cannons the entirety of the Dark Eldar army is.

Come 6th edition this may all change, but today I put together a truly optimized (according to the forums and blogosphere) list so you can see what the difference is.

HQ
Baron Sathonyx- 105 pts.

ELITES
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.

TROOPS
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 125 pts.

FAST ATTACK
4 Beastmasters; 9 Khymerae; 3 Razorwing Flocks- 201 pts.

HEAVY SUPPORT
Ravager w/ Flickerfield, Shock Prow- 120 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield, Shock Prow- 120 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.

TOTAL
1,849 pts.

As you can see it's pretty much nothing but spam. Blasters and Splinter Cannons permeate the landscape, and the Baron hangs out with the Beastmasters. Sure he keeps the beasts from charging 12", and the beasts prevent him from moving as Jump Infantry, but they're still fleet, and the Baron confers Stealth, offensive grenades, and defensive grenades to his unit (plus the all important +1 to see who chooses their deployment zone, so essentially he also confers a +1 to go first). That's right, 2 & 5 attack models with grenades. They've also got a 3+ cover save, and a 4+ invulnerable save on most of the unit, perfect for soaking up those Meltagun and Missile Launcher shots.

The thing about this list is that it's boring. There's no variety in your units, thay all serve the same role on the battlefield. Dark Lance APCs and tanks, Splinter Cannon whatever crawls out, and mop up with Blasters. Wash, rinse, repeat.

But isn't spam effective? Yep. It's very powerful. This list is quite capable of taking on any enemy it encounters and coming out on top. Hordes? you've got volume of both shots and attacks. Elite armies? Let me introduce you to my Dark Lances and my Blasters. Lots of Metal Bawkses? I've got can openers galore. There is literally no army this list cannot best with proper use.

The problem remains- I have used spammy armies and they're boring. B-O-R-I-N-G. I used to run an Iron Warriors army with a bare bones Chaos Lord, 6 squads of 5 Chaos Space Marines with Heavy Bolters, 3 squads of 3 Obliterators, and 4 Defilers. Ah, for the good ol' days of Iron Warriors! This army tabled people. In a hurry. If you lasted past turn 3 you either were firmly entrenched, or you had a LOT of models in your army. The games I played with this army were short, brutal, and systematic. There was no real challenge. That's where I break away from spam. When you just take the "best" thing over and over you take away the tactics in the game. It becomes a shooting gallery where the only challenge is determining what you should splatter first. There's no fun there.

That's why I avoid spammy lists. I have experience with them, and while they win tournaments, there's just no real effort involved. The thinking is removed from an (arguably) already less tactical game. That's why I like HordesMachine. Spam does not work. I've tried.
If you do not run a multi-faceted force you'll get overrun in one area or another. I'm getting off topic now, so back to 40k.

In the end, while I will build redundancy into my armies (it's just silly not to), I won't ever spam. Why even bother playing a game with no chance of losing? I used to think that slaughtering your opponent was the only true way to win, but perhaps with age comes wisdom. Or maybe just temperance. In the end it's about the challenge, and the fun, not the degree of victory.

Not to say I don't have more fun in games I win...

True Optimization

Let me get this out of the way up front. I love Incubi. I love their concept, I love their miniatures, and I even love their close combat "oomph". That having been said, I do have to think about the competitive side of the game, and how Dark Eldar really want to play a game of keep away with their opponents. Incubi fly in the face of this concept. They want to rush in and crush things. That just doesn't fit into the Dark Eldar metagame. This list will probably never see the light of day (I'd need a miracle- finding two more Blasters) but it's fun to dream. Of course, I could just see if anybody would trade away any Shredders that I could convert using the two Blast Pistols I'll have lying around...

The following is a 1,850 point list I slapped together in an attempt to cram two more Blasters into my list. I also wanted a Shattershard, as they're amazing against multi-wound targets. Pass a Toughness test or just be zapped into oblivion. Brilliant! I still maintain two Raiders in my force, as well as three Ravagers to keep my Darklight weapon count up. The addition of Grisly Trophies will hopefully help keep my Leadership 7 warriors in line with their 6" re-roll bubble. This list is a lot more stable by "interwebz" standards, but I think I probably ought to get a few games under my belt before I do anything too radical.


HQ
Haemonculus w/ Shattershard, Liqifier Gun; Haemonculus w/ Liquifier Gun- 135 pts.

ELITES
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.
3 Kabalite Trueborn w/ 3 Blasters; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon- 146 pts.

TROOPS
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon, Grisly Trophies- 130 pts.
5 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster; Venom w/ Splinter Cannon, Grisly Trophies- 130 pts.
10 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster, Splinter Cannon; Raider w/ Flickerfield, Grisly Trophies- 190 pts.
10 Kabalite Warriors w/ Blaster, Splinter Cannon; Raider w/ Flickerfield, Grisly Trophies- 190 pts.
9 Wyches w/ Haywire Grenades, Shardnet & Impaler; Hekatrix w/ Agoniser; Raider w/ Flickerfield- 218 pts.
9 Wyches w/ Haywire Grenades, Shardnet & Impaler; Hekatrix w/ Agoniser; Raider w/ Flickerfield- 218 pts.

HEAVY SUPPORT
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.
Ravager w/ Flickerfield- 115 pts.

TOTAL
1,848 pts.

I made an alarming discovery today. Dark Lances have a range of only 36"! I could have sworn they were a 48" range weapon, which will make this army a touch tougher to play. The "reduced" range (in my mind) will make it that much harder to nuke Demitra's Missile Launcher Devastators. I'll just have to rush them and attempt to nuke them as soon as possible. They will, of course, be firmly entrenched in some building to gain a 4+ cover save (really hoping that the 6th edition rumors of cover saves being dropped to 5+ are true). This aggressive movement will put my glorified paper airplanes directly in harm's way (lots o' Meltaguns), and will potentially strand my insidious warriors right in front of a whole bunch of Space Marines with swords and anger management issues. This is not where I want to be.

So, what do I do? Well, I see two real options. Option one is sending my Raiders to put as much of a hurting on the Devastators as possible, and accepting that I'm going to lose several (if not all three) in the exchange of fire. This is a lot of very mobile firepower to saccrifice in order to cut of some fire support. The alternative is just rushing them with my Wyches and attempting to tear them apart in close combat. Their Combat Drugs, 4+ Dodge save, and Feel No Pain (granted by their Haemonculus handlers) will make them a tall order for a dedicated ranged support squad to handle. I'm guessing the real answer lies somewhere in between. One thing's for sure, if I'm going to play in tournaments again I'm going to have to learn to deal with Missile Launcher spam. Especially when fighting Space Wolves, as their Long Fang packs will be a real nightmare to deal with.

Tomorrow will be (partially) dedicated to finishing up my Nomads, as I managed to get the Reverend Moira and Interventor Hacker primed (just as my last can of Rust-Oleum primer quit on me). Monday should see the delivery of my remaining Dark Eldar, and I guess I could squeeze in a trip to my local Games Workshop to look for Shredders...