Chibi Army

I've been trying to get Demitra to agree to gradually build a new army with me, 250 points at a time, from 500-1,750 points. Things are looking pretty good on that front, and I know where I want my army to end up (see the last post), but what should I start with?

We'll be starting with Combat Patrols. For anybody who doesn't know, Combat Patrol was a game option from the 4th edition rulebook (originally introduced in an article titled "40k In 40 Minutes" in White Dwarf) that takes place on a 4' x 4' board (so that buys me some time to make those last two sections). The restrictions on units is pretty tight (no 2+ saves, no more than 2 Wounds, etc.) but the Force Organization Chart is altered. HQs are 0-1, Troops are 1-6, and the rest of the FOC looks the same as usual. The question is what my little baby raiding force should look like.

I'm positive I'll be fielding a unit of Kabalite Warriors. These are my firebase, and they'll be my main source of anti-armor. Of course I'm probably going to be facing Orks, so fat lot of good Dark Lances will do me. If I do face any Trukks, however, they'll die QUICKLY. The confusion arises at the remaining couple of hundred points. Without my army construction software close at hand I can't be sure how many points I have remaining, but it's 200+ for sure.

I want to use Incubi. I really do. The models are gorgeous, they're absolute butchers in melee, and they're going to be amazing at uprooting anything squatting on objectives. The trade-off is that I'll be left with only a single scoring unit. This may or may not be a problem. Depending on if we end up using the 4th edition scenario or the 5th edition ones, this could put me at a serious disadvantage. Ten Dark Eldar with no leader and especially no close combat weapons is a very exposed squad. As nightmarish as the Incubi are, I just can't expect them to hold everything on the board in check.

The alternative is Wyches. There's never any harm in taking a second Troops choice, but this one is little more than an Agoniser delivery system, with the remaining avalanche of attacks probably pattering off whatever they assault due to either high Toughness or good Armor Saves (or both).

I also need to look forward to the future. As soon as we enter the 750 point level, I'll need a second Troops choice, as well as an HQ. The HQ is simple enough- a single Archon. He won't be quite as tooled up as he would be at later levels, carrying an Agoniser and Shadowfield only (no need for Combat Drugs or a Huskblade), but he still eats up a fair few points. The second Troops choice may end up having to be as small as a ground-bound Kabalite Warrior squad, and a Dark Eldar unit without its ride is usually pretty dead.

No matter what I'm probably going to go with the same paint scheme as my Battlefleet Gothic fleet. I like the way these colors bring a model together. The models' skin will be brown (Scorched Brown > Vermin Fur > Snakebite Leather to be exact) while their hair will be white. I've already used this color scheme on some Dark Elf miniatures, and the result is quite striking.

I'll be going for a sort of "comic book" feel, with the shading and highlights sharp and defined. This is a very deliberate system which really makes the miniatures pop off the table, and compliments the models' already "supervillain" look. I will be keeping metallics dark and to a minimum. Some parts of the models' guns and knives, but Agonisers and Klaives will have more of a polished obsidian look, shiny and with deep blue highlights. The paint scheme is going to look striking as vibrant purples, whites, and greens offset deep blacks. Hopefully I'll be able to get this show on the road pretty soon.

My next post will probably be sample army lists.

For now, however, back to the G. W. site to lust after those sweet, sweet Incubi...

Considering Incubi

I've been reading up on Incubi recently. It seems they're about the biggest gamble in the game since any sensible opponent will try to down them ASAP. Well, duh.
The upside to these guys is the immense melee bite they bring to the table, and with the attaches Archons more than makes up for their bullet-magnet status. All my eggs in one basket? Well, yes. Should I hit you with that basket, however, I'll break your face.
The Klaivex, however, are probably not worth the cost of almost two Incibi each.

The army I've written up still has the added threat of the forthcoming Wych assault. These girls (and guys) are more than capable close combat opponents.

Fourteen Dark Lances are capable of offing vehicles and mangling dangerous close combat opponents. The problem remains with the army being a glass cannon, and amassed anti-armor fire will quickly strip my evil warriors of their rides.

Without further ado, here's the revised army list:

HQ

-Archon with Combat Drugs, Huskblade, & Shadowfield
-Archon with Combat Drugs, Huskblade, & Shadowfield

Elites

-7x Incubi; Raider with Flickerfield
-7x Incubi; Raider with Flickerfield

Troops

-10x Kabalite Warriors with Dark Lance; Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Kabalite Warriors with Dark Lance; Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Wyches; Hekatrix with Phantasm Grenade Launcher & Agoniser; Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Wyches; Hekatrix with Phantasm Grenade Launcher & Agoniser; Raider with Flickerfield

Heavy Support

-Ravager with Flickerfield
-Ravager with Flickerfield

I'm thinking that this army has a more rounded feel, and with the Archon's  Combat Drugs he'll have a lot more of a combat punch (to the point he may not even need the assistance of the Incubi). The more amassed Incubi squads should be more survivable with their Space Marine armor save (as well as the fact that there are now seven of them).

Another thought, but another concern- Do I have enough Dark Lances?

Another Two-Fer, This Time: Terrain

As I sit here pondering the idea of a 40k escalation "League" (if you can call two people a league) I have come to a conclusion. My current 6'x4' table is simply out of date. I have a desert themed table that would look much better, and has a lot more line-of-sight blocking terrain. This, of course, leads me to a couple of problems.

One- I need two more 2'x2' squares to make the table out of.
Two- I need more fine ballast to texture the boards.
Three- I may need to buy new paint. Mine has been in storage since early fall, and I'm sue re all the pigment has settled to the bottom. What I'm not sure about is being able to re-mix the paints without making a gigantic mess somewhere in / near the apartment.
Four- I need a new paint roller. Or at least the spongy bit that goes over it. I'm sure Wal*Mart has one, it's just another thing on my terrain building checklist.

More terrain would be even better, as I'm not so sure I have enough terrain to fill up a quarter of a 6'x4' table, but if not I'm pretty close.

Once the two other board sections are / would be done, I('d) need to flock and Static Grass the sections, as right now they're bare.

This project would need to be put off until the snow stops around here any way and the temperature is a bearable state for some time.

This is a project I'd love to jump on, but weather and space constraints keep getting in the way. Don't think for a second though that this is over- My MalifauX / Warmachine boards and terrain components will not go to waste!

Dark Elfdar

Well, with all of Demitra's ravings about starting a Grey Knight army, that would leave us with a Blood Angel, Grey Knight, Plague Marine and Deathwing army. Quite a few MEQ armies there, and more than a few loyalist chapters. This has me pondering a Dark Eldar army. Two of my army lists have really caught my interest, and I will post them both here (of course).

The 1,750 point Wych Cult

HQ

-Lelith Hesperax
-Succubus with Agoniser & Haywire Grenades

Troops

-9x Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix with Agoniser & Phantasm Grenade Launcher, Raider with Flickerfield
-9x Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix with Agoniser & Phantasm Grenade Launcher, Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix with Agoniser & Phantasm Grenade Launcher, Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix with Agoniser & Phantasm Grenade Launcher, Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix with Agoniser & Phantasm Grenade Launcher, Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix with Agoniser & Phantasm Grenade Launcher, Raider with Flickerfield

Fast Attack

-2x Beastmasters & 8x Khymerae
-10x Hellions, Helliarch with Agoniser

This list has Troops-spam out the wazoo. The Wyches are highly aggressive attacking units, which could in the end spell their doom. The HQs are both butchers. Lelith is perfect for clearing out tough combatants like Space Marines. The Succubus with Agoniser is there for Monstrous Creatures (her fixed to-wound roll and ability to ignore armor saves will make a mess out of high-Toughness enemies). The low Armor Value of the Transports may be a hinderance, since any Raider that fails its Flickerfield save will probably be grounded, however the assaults pouring out of the vehicles will likely massacre anything they touch.

The alternative is a more balanced army, focused on more of an all-comers approach.

1,750 point Dark Eldar Kabal Army

HQ

-Archon with Huskblade, Shadowfield
-Archon with Huskblade, Shadowfield

Elites

-5x Incubi, Klaivex with Demiklaves, Raider with Flickerfield
-5x Incubi, Klaivex with Demiklaves, Raider with Flickerfield

Troops

-10x Kabalite Warriors with Dark Lance, Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Kabalite Warriors with Dark Lance, Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix with Agoniser & Phantasm Grenade Launcher, Raider with Flickerfield
-10x Wyches with Haywire Grenades, Hekatrix with Agoniser & Phantasm Grenade Launcher, Raider with Flickerfield

Heavy Support

-Ravager with 3x Dark Lance, Night Shields, Flickerfield
-Ravager with 3x Dark Lance, Night Shields, Flickerfield

This is an army that focuses on redundancy. Two of everything leads to more target priority issues, especially with Ravagers and Incubi closing to take out big targets. The Archons' Huskblades and  Shadowfeld make him perfect for eliminating Monstrous Creatures and Independent Characters with its Instant Death capabilites. For Eternal Warriors and vehicles the Dark Lance volleys should make short work. Of course, Wyches are there to help remove objective squatters. Haywire Grenades make them capable of tearing open transports, and Agonisers are there for MEQs and the like. The Incubi assisted by their Archons should slaughter anything they touch, especially now that their armor no longer prevents them from being Fleet.

I'm leaning toward the second army, but the theme of the Wych Cult is just so hard to ignore.

Rat-A-Tooie

My second 2,250 point Skaven army today, this one is totally hand-to-hand combat focused. This army consists of:

Lords
-Grey Seer on Screaming Bell with Power Scroll, Shadow Magnet Trinket, & Skalm

Heroes
-Chieftain Battle Standard Bearer with Charmed Shield & Talisman of Preservation
-Warlock Engineer with Doomrocket

Core
-44x Clanrats with Shields & Poisoned Wind Mortar Weapon Team
-40X Clanrats with Shields & Poisoned Wind Mortar Weapon Team
-40x Skavenslaves
-40x Skavenslaves
-6x Giant Rats with 1x Packmaster

Special
-6x Rat Ogres with 4x Packmasters
-8x Gutter Runners with Slings & Poisoned Attacks

Rare
-Doomwheel
-Hell Pit Abomination with Warpstone Spikes

This is a much more straight forward army list. This one simply wants to get in close to the enemy and beat the snot out of them. The avalanche of attacks provided by the Rat Ogres (21 at full strength) will help take heat off of your Hell Pit Abomination and / or Doomwheel. If not, the Rat Ogres will make mincemeat of whatever they touch. It's a win-win scenario!

This time the Hell Pit Abomination has Warpstone Spikes. This is to keep ethereal units like Wraiths from being able to dismantle the creature with no return attacks.

The Giant Rats are another war machine hunter. They attack from the front as the Gutter Runners attack from the rear.

All the other models act exactly as they did in the previous list, with the exception of the Screaming Bell, which wants to advance with the army.

This is one of my personal favorite lists, which trades the Magic Phase for raw hitting power. Once the enemy is crushed and driven before me, I do a little happy dance.

...In theory...