Creamed by Eldar.....

[dragonknight4275]

I went to GW yesterday (which was Thursday, 3/17), and I played a 2000pt kill point game against Eldar. I got owned. The final score was 8 to 5. I was making a heroic counterassault with my last unit, my Librarian, assault termies and priest, and if I had a couple more turns (the game ended after Turn 6) I MIGHT have actually tied or even won! In the last two turns I got four kill points with that one unit alone. The fifth (well technically first) one I got in Turn 3, when my Captain slayed a Dark Reaper squad....But I still got crushed. It was sad. What to do? I am meeting the guy I played in a rematch tomorrow, and I need some tactics to beat Eldar. I'll give you a quick breakdown of the list:

 

HQ

Asurmen

Farseer w/ singing spear, Doom, and Guide

 

EL

10 Howling Banshees w/ Exarch in Wave Serpent w/ pulse lasers (I think)

 

6 Fire Dragons w/ Exarch

 

TP

10 Dire Avengers w/ Exarch in Wave Serpent w/ pulse lasers

 

10 Dire Avengers w/ Exarch in Wave Serpent w/ *blank*

 

10 Guardians w/ 2 starcannons

 

6 Pathfinders

 

FA

6 Warp Spiders w/ Exarch

 

HS

Wraithlord w/ *blank* and wraithsword

 

5 Dark Reapers w/ Exarch

 

I'm pretty sure that was it. It's the most accurate I can remember. Where it says *blank*, I'm not sure what it was. So please help me with tactics!

[DrummingBerserker21]

In my experience with Eldar, there are two things that you need to bring along for sure: Librarians and Sanguinary Priests. The Librarian will help stop all of the Eldar Doom shenanigans which can grow to be quite a pain, and as Eldar lack AP3 guns to my knowledge besides the Dark Reapers, the Priests will do a wonderful job of keeping your troops alive. Another unit I have found to be very effective is the Devastators with 4 ML. Because of their versatility they do wonders against the Eldar who have no vehicles above 12 and rare units with better than a 3+ armour save. That and the fact that the majority of the units are toughness 3 makes ML a godsend. I prefer to have as many boots on the ground as possible, and so with that in mind I'll usually take at least 2 RAS, 1 tactical squad (for objectives), a Vanguard squad to tie up his fire support, and if I'm feeling funky a small DC w/chaplain/reclusiarch just to make him sweat. Besides my usual approach our resident Eldar player has quickly grown to hate my Baal Pred's and auto las predator zooming around my rhino's when I play a mechanized force. It all depends on the list you're playing however is it jumpy, mechanized, DOA, etc.?

[M33TGRINDER]

really to help you the best i would need to know what youre running to give advice for that setup or for a possible setup with your available models.

 

that eldar list is a very well rounded list. are you guy pledging to use the same lists? i would try to focus on taking out those reapers, banshees and farseer first. avoid those dragons until you can get into hth and hammer them into fairy dust. do not underestimate the dire avengers. 30 bolter shots at bs4 on any unit can really hurt or at least soften them up for a charge from banshees to finish that unit off. also avoid the wraithguard he might have a nasty ranged weapon but its better to let him try and shoot rather than get into hth.

 

imo the main strength of eldar is being able to strike at key spots with deadly attacks ranged or hth. so one tactic i use generally is to keep most of my army together with the weaker units out on the edges of my horde to speed bump charges so i can get a counter charge or if they wipe a unit i can lay down counter fire.

 

really tho its hard to give a generalized tactics without knowing what resources you have.

[The Yncarne]

imo the main strength of eldar is being able to strike at key spots with deadly attacks ranged or hth. so one tactic i use generally is to keep most of my army together with the weaker units out on the edges of my horde to speed bump charges so i can get a counter charge or if they wipe a unit i can lay down counter fire.

 

I agree. They can dominate the move phase and generally one of the others. Best to lure them in an then counter assault unless you're playing lots of auto cannons.

[tkenixon]

My roommate destroyed me with his eldar army...but then I got smart. Scout team with locator beacon. Scouts can take out the wraithlord and the psychers. Bring terminators in off the locator beacon and slaughter what ever shooty squad you can. Of course I also use a land raider and a stormraven so that might help me out a little bit...he wont think about scouts until the big guns are out of the way.

[d503]

The best way to sieze the initative against Eldar is to take a whirlwind.

 

landing an AP4 pieplate on his dire avengers when they drop out to bladestorm will make him hate you.

 

He will *have* to kill the whirlwind before he can deploy his regular troopers. It will give you the initiative.

 

You are lucky he doesn't field a squad of darkreapers with Eldrad Ulthuran. That's what I always do with Eldar. Its really, really nasty. Borrow his codex and have a look.

[*Riken*]

Looking at that Eldar list it really isn't that great or amazing and its illegal, Guardians can't take two weapons platforms so only one Starcannon per squad and Wave Serpents can't take Pulse lasers. Without knowing what your running for a list it is abit hard to give much advice.

 

But some general ideas for fighting this list: Baal Predators are amazing against them Assault Cannons + Heavy Bolters = dead Eldar squad. Don't fear getting into CC with a wraithlord if you have a fist or thunder hammer they only have two attacks if you charge them and no invul save and assault squad with 2 Melta guns + Hammer will normally kill it out right if you shoot it then charge. Don't fear charging Banshees either they need 4s to hit and 5s to wound and only have one attack each an assault squad will again normally make short work of them even more so if you can bolt pistol them first. If you have a Furioso use it with talons and target the Dire Avengers with Asurmen as he + exarch will tarpit a normal squad.

Warp Spiders / Dark Reapers can be a pain but really assault them and they will break or hit them with a Baal Predator and shoot them to bits.

Target priority against this list I would say is 1)Serpent with Fire Dragons 2) Wraithlord 3)Either of the Serpents with Dire Avengers. After that really what ever you want guardians pose a very small threat they can almost be ignored. If possible template the Pathfinders and laugh at there lack of saves.

 

Hope some of that is helpful

 

Riken

[dragonknight4275]

Looking at that Eldar list it really isn't that great or amazing and its illegal, Guardians can't take two weapons platforms so only one Starcannon per squad and Wave Serpents can't take Pulse lasers.

Oh. Ok, it's either he's playing some nasty crap on me or I got it wrong. Probably the latter. Sorry about any confusion, but it's the best I could do, yeah?

 

Don't fear charging Banshees either they need 4s to hit and 5s to wound and only have one attack each an assault squad will again normally make short work of them even more so if you can bolt pistol them first.

I know. After the Fire Dragons blew up my Stormraven (look in the original post), my libby, termies, and priest got assaulted by the 10 Banshees with the Farseer. Even though the Farseer doomed my unit and they all went first, they epic failed and got no wounds whatsoever, even with rerolls. It was pathetic. My return strikes slayed every single one of them, giving me my second and third kill points in the game. :)

 

Hope some of that is helpful

Yes it most certainly was. Thanks!

[*Riken*]

Oh. Ok, it's either he's playing some nasty crap on me or I got it wrong. Probably the latter. Sorry about any confusion, but it's the best I could do, yeah?

 

No worries, I brought that up to make sure that you weren't getting cheated by an illegal list just in case.

 

I know. After the Fire Dragons blew up my Stormraven (look in the original post), my libby, termies, and priest got assaulted by the 10 Banshees with the Farseer. Even though the Farseer doomed my unit and they all went first, they epic failed and got no wounds whatsoever, even with rerolls. It was pathetic. My return strikes slayed every single one of them, giving me my second and third kill points in the game. ;)

 

Just try to take out the fire dragons early as that is the better portion of his anti tank / anti elite ,there short range is there Achilles heel take out there mobility and make them walk and they become useless.

 

Good luck in your game

 

Riken

[BlkTom]

Yeah, the Fire Dragons only have a 12" range (Exarch has 18"), so stand off and shoot them. Use vehicles against the Dire Avengers as they have no real anti-vehicle capabilities. Assault the Dark Reapers or target them first and just remove them. They are more anti-Infantry than vehicle IMO. Against Marines they are using only plasma missles anyway, but are Vindicator bait.

 

I personally dislike Howling Banshees, as I am a Striking Scorpion guy. Banshees need to much help to be effective and can't be charged. I would have used Harliquinns instead, so lucky for you he didn't. I think the Spiders are more dangerous than the Banshees and that is the unit you need to watch out for. Be glad he is not using Bright Lance aspect warriors. Your buddy is also running warlock light to get rid of the wraithsight problems of the Wraithlord and wraithguard, so all he has the the Farseer and he has to be within 6" of both units. The Farseer is now Vindicator bait. Kill him and now he has to roll wraithsight to use the Wraithlord and Wraithguard every turn.

 

D503 must mean Vindicator, not Whirlwind. Personally, take 2 if you can. His Bright Lances reduce armor 12+ to 12, but are only Str 8, so they are actually more effective against your Land Raider and Storm Chicken than the Vindicators. Str 10 instakills everything of his but the Wraithlord. Cheater claws on a Furoso are money, excellent advice there. A Baal predator with twin-linked Assault Cannons is also excellent advice. You have some tough choices to make.

 

Just remember... Eldar: Toughness 3, 5+ armor saves, and Init better than yours. Stand back and shoot and shoot before you charge. You also don't want to DS andthing unless it is a single Droppod with a Furoso with cheater claws or tactical Terminators (so they can lay down some lead). The less stuff on the board means he can focus his shots on them and take them out peicemeal. Eldar are a shooty army, but they do not have the armor or toughness to stand toe to toe for long.