[Sylphor]

I am new to Warhammer 40k and I am thinking of my first army of being Dark Eldar.
I know that they need some time to get used to them and i am willing to give them time.
I have thought through a small army and any thoughts and comments would be appreciated.

HQ
Archon
Incubi x4
Drazhar

Elites
Wych x5

Troops
Warrior x16
Raider

Heavy attack
Ravager
Scourges x4

[Lomendil]

Welcome!

You're not wrong, Dark Eldar do take time to get used to. But once you get the basics it gets a lot easier - though never easy, if you have good opponents. But that's a good thing, no-one likes unchallenging games.

One thing you should know about Dark Eldar is that it can be tricky to make army lists for them compared to with other armies. Dark Eldar have a smaller number of effective combinations than, say, Space Marines - but those effective combinations are just as deadly as anything else out there (barring the most horrible cheesy lists), and there are still plenty to choose from.

For a list, what point limit do you want to start off with? Many players start by collecting to 500pts, 750pts or 1000pts to begin with, some start with the Combat Patrol 400pt rules.



If I were doing a 1000pt list I'd go for an all-flying army (in higher point games I'd use an army based around Webway portals, but that's another discussion - no need to worry about that yet). I'd have it based around 3 Raider Squads and 2 assault units. My assault units would be a Lord with an Incubi retinue, and a Wych Squad riding in a Raider. I'd also have a Ravager in support. I wouldn't use Scourges - I think they are weak and overpriced.

So:

HQ:

Dracon - Agonizer, Splinter Pistol, Trophy Rack, Hell Mask
Incubi Retinue (5) - Raider

Notes: This is a strong assaulting unit that is especially deadly against enemies with good armour. I choose a lightly-equipped Dracon rather than a heavily equipped Archon because the Incubi + the Dracon are very strong by themselves and don't really need any extra hitting power - the points I'd spend on an Archon can be better used elsewhere. Similarly, that's why I didn't include Drazhar, he's too expensive for a small list. The Raider is essential to get this squad into assault quickly.

This unit is going to be a priority target for enemy shooting, so you *must* make sure to take advantage of terrain to protect them (needs to be level 3 terrain). Remember, the rules suggest 25% terrain minimum, so always insist on that much at least Don't just charge headlong because the Raider is easy to shoot down - be sneaky.

Elites:

Wyches(10) - Wych Weapons, 2 Blasters, Succubus with Agonizer, Raider

Notes: This is the second strong assault unit for this list. The Blasters are there to soften up enemy squads right before you assault them - they are good for killing Marines and taking wounds off big monsters. The Succubus' Agonizer can hurt even the most heavily armoured and tough opponents. The Raider gives the unit the speed it needs to attack the enemy as quickly as possible.

Wyches can take on almost anything in assaults and win unless they are heavily outnumbered. Wyches are especially good against enemy assault units. Like the Retinue, be careful not to let them get shot at.

Troops:

Raider Squad (10) - Splinter Cannon, Blaster, Raider

Raider Squad (10) - Splinter Cannon, Blaster, Raider

Raider Squad (5) - Splinter Cannon, Blaster, Raider

Notes: These are used to support the Wyches and Incubi, either by joining assaults with them or by shooting at enemy units to weaken them first. They have good firepower and can take on both vehicles and troops. They are quite fragile though, try not to let them take a lot of enemy shooting

Heavy Support:

Ravager - 2 Disintegrators, 1 Dark Lance

Notes: This is fire support for your army. It's mainly designed to kill troops (you can use your Raiders to hunt tanks with their Dark Lances) but can be used against vehicles too if needed.





An alternative Troops selection would be 4 identical Raider Squads like this:

Raider Squad (5) - Dark Lance, Raider


Each of these would be used like two units. The Warriors would hang back and snipe while the empty Raiders fly around like a gunboat.

[Sylphor]

Ok thanx for the help i like the setup and will take further actions on it.

[freecloud]

Originally Posted by Sylphor

I am new to Warhammer 40k and I am thinking of my first army of being Dark Eldar.
I know that they need some time to get used to them and i am willing to give them time.
I have thought through a small army and any thoughts and comments would be appreciated.

HQ
Archon
Incubi x4
Drazhar

Elites
Wych x5

Troops
Warrior x16
Raider

Heavy attack
Ravager
Scourges x4

DE aren't so much take getting used to, as getting the basics in place first. A good firebase makes them a fairly good and easy to play army. I don't know what points you're looking to build up to first. Your army looks to be about 850 points.

The absolute core of the army is 2 warrior squads with 2 Dark Lances/Splinter Cannon each for fire support. I would suggest they are at least 12 strong each so I'd add more warriors. Scourges are very expensive points wise in a small army (assuming you are arming them with Splinter Cannons etc), in my view you're better off with a Talos and a Ravager initially, the Talos is a superb fire magnet and assault thingy and easy to proxy before buying one - try it out. Your Wych squad is probably a bit small - I actually don't use Wyches at 1,000 pts.

My army, using yours as a starting point wold be:

- Your HQ, less 1 Incubi + 2 Warriors with Splinter Cannon to give it a bit of firepower on the attack + Raider
- 9 Wyches, 1 Succubus in Raider
- 2 x 12 Warriors with 2 Dark Lances/Splinter Cannon
- Ravager
- Talos

If you do use Scourges, take 5........

Hope thats useful.....

[_tauknight_]

In many cases opponents will get more experience then you, remember that. This is because Dark Eldar playing style is very unique and most other armies follow simple paterns.

However unless you play against the same opponents, once you get a effective style that you like to play, you will have a win streak against most armies.

Its common that Dark Eldar get a chain of defeats early in their gaming experience and then later on a chain of wins once you have knowledge of many armies fighting styles.

I would recommend learning the Space Marine codex inside out since 50%+ of players use them. Remember that the only mobile firepower they have is landspeeders and then hellfire dreadnoughts.

Also remember that devastator squads are not your friends and terminators ARE your friends, since you can get rid of them quite easy.

[deamonhntr001]

Originally Posted by Sylphor

I am new to Warhammer 40k and I am thinking of my first army of being Dark Eldar.
I know that they need some time to get used to them and i am willing to give them time.
I have thought through a small army and any thoughts and comments would be appreciated.

HQ
Archon
Incubi x4
Drazhar

Elites
Wych x5

Troops
Warrior x16
Raider

Heavy attack
Ravager
Scourges x4

dont start DE until u have learned the rules and then u need to play for a couple of years and be a veteran

[Lomendil]

Nah, that's not true. It does help, but that applies to any army. You can start DE as a complete newbie, if you are smart then you'll quickly pick them up.

[alcibiates]

Hey, I actually started my first army as DE about a year ago, so personally I think I'm best for this subject ^^

If you can find somebody nice that plays 40k, proxy lists. Don't buy anything for a couple months. Write a whole bunch of lists until you find something that's really you. Then every time you think you've got a list that you really like, go out and play it a couple times. Proxy all of your models (you can buy like your base archon and warriors and what-not like that, stuff that you would use in any army, but proxy the majority of your models, it might save you money in the long. Like if you buy your entire army and then later decide that you want a different list, you've gota whole bunch of models with nothing to do...) You can message me on AIM if you have it and want to. krypteia336

[deamonhntr001]

Originally Posted by Lomendil

Nah, that's not true. It does help, but that applies to any army. You can start DE as a complete newbie, if you are smart then you'll quickly pick them up.

or you could be like me and forget to learn the rules and just start. but dont not start. build up your troops before you start

[deamonhntr001]

Originally Posted by deamonhntr001

or you could be like me and forget to learn the rules and just start. but dont not start. build up your troops before you start

and dont be like me