Aeldari Codex - First Impressions

[ThePenitentOne]

Codex Impression:

 

I haven't done as deep a dive as I should have yet, but I'm liking what I see; the Harlequins continue to be appealing even after losing their dex- GW is keeping them relevant, so that's nice. I'm not sold on Ynarri though- it still feels a little punitive to add units to Ynarri detachment.

 

I really do wish the book had gone a little further on the Corsairs though. A generic HQ would have gone a long way; I like it when sub-factions can appear on a roster as a detachment, even if I never actually field them that way. In a narrative setting, you need the subfactions of your army to be able to interact with each other at the detachment level. Who negotiates the Corsairs contributing to the war band if they don't have generic HQ?

 

I would also have liked even a single Anrathe WL Trait, Relic, and 2-3 Strats, and specific mention that Anrathe detachments could ally with Drukhari. While we're at it, there was no need to exclude them from the Ynarri- actually one of the places they fit the best.

 

The Crusade Content in this dex is nice. I think that there should be benefits to the Avatar if the Exarch sacrificed to awaken it is Legendary or Heroic. I love the fact that there is Crusade content specific to the Harlequins and Ynarri. Again, I which Corsairs were afforded the same treatment; they aren't totally ignored-  Anrathe units can be selected to walk the path of the outcast, so that's something.

 

Ideas for my Crusade:

 

So financially, I really need to make the most of the models I have. I can build the army as it grows, one unit at a time as I raise my supply limit high enough to accommodate it. The models I have include the CWE from the Blood of the Phoenix (Jain Zar, 5 banshees, a Falcon and a Vyper) plus 5 Dire Avengers. This only comes out to 23 PL, and Jain Zar is not ideal in a Crusade where she can't grow- but she's the only HQ I've got, so I'm going to let her be an intermittent character who isn't so much a part of the crusade as a mentor to it. 

 

So the idea is that Jain Zar is working with the Ynarri, and Yvraine has seen that the Black Stone Fortress on the Western Fringe may have some value in bringing about Ynead's full awakening. She also knows that Amallyn Shadowguide and few units of Anrathe and Rangers have already set out for the BSF, and she knows that they will need support. She has been tasked to select a single unit of Dire Avengers and a single unit Banshees and set out on a journey to contact Amallyn Shadowguide. 

 

Both Yvraine and Jain Zar are aware that they a dropping a stone into the still waters of the fates that will grow and ripple outward as it travels, gathering additional Aeldari along the way. Jain Zar is gathering those young warriors who have been chosen by destiny to become agents of the Swordwind

 

Obviously, both Aspect units will be embarking upon the path of the warrior, and both exarchs are destined to be the founders of Aspect shrines and teach others the way of the warrior. I'm going to try and guide their growth to ensure that at least one of them ends up with two exarch powers. There are waypoints along the path to the Blackstone Fortress where webway gates will allow the Crusade to receive reinforcements from Biel Tan- Jain Zar must find a worthy candidate to walk the path of the Seer so that she can leave the crusade in good hands.

[Dr. Clock]

I had a game last night, and I think it validates my original opinion.... the codex has lots of good, solid units, but it's VERY easy to make a mistake with it, because most of it is very fragile. It reminds me of Sisters with a real psychic phase.

 

I'm not getting the Falcon being OP talk. I really don't get it. I was drop podding Ultra's with cherubs and MM's and doing a lot of work with them, and they weren't as fragile as eldar, and it still got wacked pretty fast. Good players also are very good at blocking out deep strike units, especially in 9th.

 

Well... we've always been fragile, it's true.

 

And Falcons are not OP, certainly, but it's nice to have them in a distinct role compared to the Serpent. The ability to drop in saves them from T1, giving some strong positioning potential that's not reliant on the deployment phase.

 

It's not really spammable, which is good IMO, but before the codex I basically always felt that the serpent was better through sheer durability and transport capacity, in addition to having pretty much the same killing potential since the pulse laser was roundly interchangeable with a pair of lances.

 

Now it feels impactful, consistent, and distinct. One can find a home in any list IMO, whether gunning for the dragon-splosion, a cheeky ghostwalk charge, or just an easy RND and/or EoaF turn one or three.

 

Cheers,

 

The Good Doctor.

[Karhedron]

I have been looking at our Secondary Objectives and I think that leveraging these is going to be the key to our success. Our Psychic secondary can be performed by any Psyker unit (the main ones in the 2022 mission pack require Psyker Characters). This means our Warlock Conclaves and even Voidscarred can fulfil these secondaries. Scout the Enemy also looks like it is going to be quite easy to perform using our mobility. The one involve Aspect Warriors killing things also has a lot of potential if you want to run an Aspect-heavy list. Even if you don't want to spam all-aspects, it is quite easy to farm points by having other units soften up a target and then have the Aspect Warriors deliver the killing blow. There is nothing quite as auto-take as Oath of Moment but I can see some good potential in those Secondaries.

 

The in increasing WC of the psychic action makes it look difficult at first but remember we can use Strands of Fate in the late game to ensure we pass the test, even if it has gone up to WC7.

[Doghouse]

I think this is one of the first really well made 9th ed codexes for me which is why I think it feels a bit op in places. I think this may be a fun army to play with.

[Prot]

I have been looking at our Secondary Objectives and I think that leveraging these is going to be the key to our success. Our Psychic secondary can be performed by any Psyker unit (the main ones in the 2022 mission pack require Psyker Characters). This means our Warlock Conclaves and even Voidscarred can fulfil these secondaries. Scout the Enemy also looks like it is going to be quite easy to perform using our mobility. The one involve Aspect Warriors killing things also has a lot of potential if you want to run an Aspect-heavy list. Even if you don't want to spam all-aspects, it is quite easy to farm points by having other units soften up a target and then have the Aspect Warriors deliver the killing blow. There is nothing quite as auto-take as Oath of Moment but I can see some good potential in those Secondaries.

 

The in increasing WC of the psychic action makes it look difficult at first but remember we can use Strands of Fate in the late game to ensure we pass the test, even if it has gone up to WC7.

 

Oh man, good catch on the Nachmund secondary. I just played it and used my Warlock conclave to perform it! Ack I cheated!  I have to confess though I haven't even considered the secondaries from the codex as they were so negatively frown upon by most of the reviews I read. 

 

As far as the codex goes, after seeing some more games, playing a bit more, I really think this might be one of the best codexes. I think the well roundedness, and yes there are some strong choices, and some pretty bad ones, but you get your fix of -everything- in this book. Decent resilience, psychic, speed, assault, shooting, HQ's, wraith constructs, variety of 'valid' rulesets for Craftworlds. 

 

There is a lot to enjoy here. I've made several lists that I consider all fun to play with and against, that have a large flex in competitive ability. This codex has a lot of good things going for it. And some of those poorly pointed squads will get fixed in time. My only gripe right now is I really, really dislike moving the Avengers out of troops, and the Guardians/Rangers are such fantastic models, and a pleasure to assemble/paint (compared to the old ones) but I feel fairly confident they will be sidelined as minimal units forced in to fill detachment slots.

 

I'm just being real. This can be compensated for, but I always feel like a codex's best assets are often strong troops, and it makes list building far easier, and more fun to play.

[Karhedron]

I'm just being real. This can be compensated for, but I always feel like a codex's best assets are often strong troops, and it makes list building far easier, and more fun to play.

I agree. Weak Troops just feel like a tax. While Guardians have been buffed, they are still a bit too short ranged for backfield camping and a bit too fragile to get up close.

[MadEdric]

Had a game this weekend with my friend Andes. Love the new codex.

We both felt it has ooomph, but not too much.

Strands of Fate will take some time remembering, but seems pretty nice. I often had unused dice at the end of the round that I could have used, but often forgot about them.

Fire prism lance shot is really strong. I was usually using dispersed shots to clear out infantry, but later in the game was able to hit a Repulsor with 2 shots for a total of 9 damage (it had 8 left). I had only really glanced over the stats for it and was quite surprised to see 3d3 for damage.

Ulthwé love Strands of Fate. I was rolling 6 (could have made it 7 with Weeping Stones), re-rolling 2, and retaining 5 as I had Eldrad as my warlord. That was giving me a great number of dice to play with. As mentioned, just got to remember they are there.

I remembered most of my Craftworld traits, though totally forgot the reroll one wound die. Ah well, why should things change.

[jeremy1391]

The new codex is finally giving me a reason to paint up the murder clowns I bought back in 8th

[01RTB01]

 

I'm just being real. This can be compensated for, but I always feel like a codex's best assets are often strong troops, and it makes list building far easier, and more fun to play.

I agree. Weak Troops just feel like a tax. While Guardians have been buffed, they are still a bit too short ranged for backfield camping and a bit too fragile to get up close.

I'm looking forward to running 30 sto guardians up field with an avatar to see what happens. They'll probably die horribly but still

[Karhedron]

I'm looking forward to running 30 sto guardians up field with an avatar to see what happens. They'll probably die horribly but still

Given the Serpent Scale Shield and maybe cast Fortune on them and they may just reach combat. Certainly they will prove a bigger iritation for your opponent to remove than expected.

[The Yncarne]

Anybody have any recommendations for arming wave serpents? I'm leaning towards 3 shuriken cannons as lances never seem to hit. I can be convinced otherwise.

[Karhedron]

Anybody have any recommendations for arming wave serpents? I'm leaning towards 3 shuriken cannons as lances never seem to hit. I can be convinced otherwise.

It all depends on what you have in the rest of your army. If you have plenty of tank-busting in the form of Wraithguard, Dire Dragons etc then balancing it out with Shuricannons is a good move.

 

I normally favour triple shuricannon as it provides good ROF and Serpents usually operate at shorter ranges due to transporting units.

[Dr. Clock]

 

I'm just being real. This can be compensated for, but I always feel like a codex's best assets are often strong troops, and it makes list building far easier, and more fun to play.

I agree. Weak Troops just feel like a tax. While Guardians have been buffed, they are still a bit too short ranged for backfield camping and a bit too fragile to get up close.

 

I was a little cheesed to be more or less forced into mandatory 2x5 Rangers at first, but they can do... surprising things!

 

Last night they were able to camp banners, and even sneak a pair of mortal wounds on a Daemon Prince. Alot of other factions would happily take 2x5 sneeky ObSec for 130pts. Just remember that you hit on 3s with the rifles even on the move, and always fish highest value mortals!

 

In other news, love affair with Falcon continues. Took 2 last night, and between Dragons in one and ObSec Corsairs in the other alongside 2 Serpents (DA and Voidscarred) and 1 Prism, it was just too much speed and firepower for Death Guard to handle. Called end of turn three when the Possessed failed their charge into Dragons who with Scorps had just dealt with 10 Plague Marines coming out of a Rhino. Dragons with Scorp support is... fave.

 

Also Strands of Fate. Going all in on Strands using weeping stones, fate reader and a pair of Farseers, I ended up with 3 Fate saves in turn 2 and 2 in turn 3. I have to admit that with Ulthwé 6++ on everything, Fate saves are 'a thing'. Even when I fired a serpent shield to remove Overwatch, my Serpent just soaking an extra melta or something each turn feels soooooo clutch, even though it's essentially combining Relic, Warlord and 'combat doctrines' into one pool mechanic.

 

 

Anybody have any recommendations for arming wave serpents? I'm leaning towards 3 shuriken cannons as lances never seem to hit. I can be convinced otherwise.

Mine are cheap and cheerful with scatter lasers and catapults. Since Serpents are usually driving straight at Objectives, I take the heavy AT elsewhere, and 16 shots as light infantry mop is still relevant. Did starcannons before this 'dex on occasion, but everything is spendy and specialist now (as it should be). 'Transport' is the only role you should ask Serpents to fill IMO.

 

So shuriken cannons? Sure! Still not sure that the third is 10 points better than 2 catapults though...

 

Cheers,

 

The Good Doctor.

[L30n1d4s]

First Impressions of Top-Notch Units/Combos/Abilities in the Codex --

 

 

Right now, a lot of the most powerful builds I see coming from the various Aspect Warriors:

 

 

1 - Alaitoc Swooping Hawks -- I think these are literally the most mobile units in the games (well, except for Baharoth, of course ). With a base 14" movement, Fly, and free Deep Strike from Reserve, they are already exceptionally mobile in their "base" profile. What really sets them apart is their "Skyleap" ability... instead of doing a Battle Focus move, they can just bounce into the sky and IMMEDIATELY re-set up ANYWHERE ON THE BOARD that is more than 9" from enemy units. Translated into plain-speak, every turn they get to move, shoot, and then redeploy anywhere they want... for free... with no limit of number of units or how many times they can do it. Just being able to do this once a game per unit already makes Grey Knight Interceptors, Dreadknights, and Necron/Thousand Son/AdMech Relics very competitive, now imagine being able to do this with up to three squads of Swooping Hawks every turn for free. No Objective will be safe, the Swooping Hawks can almost always shoot and then bounce to somewhere safe without being shot back, and anything that requires getting units into distant locations for Scoring can be an almost automatic guarantee with these units. Finally, with Alaitoc Cover Light/Dense Cover bouses, plus the Exarch relic that gives them a 5+++ FNP, even Indirect Fire weapons are going to have a very difficult time hurting them. I don't think I am exaggerating when I say that 1-3 squads of Swooping Hawks are likely to be found in every competitive Craftworld list.

 

 

2 - Biel-Tan Dire Avengers with "Shredding Fire" Exarch Power -- So, a 10 man Dire Avenger squad (dual Catapults on the Exarch) normally puts out 33 x S4 AP-2 Dmg1 shots at 18". Well, if you have them ride in a Wave Serpent with Biel-Tan Farseer with the Spirit Stone of Anath'lan Relic, then they can jump out 18" from an enemy, have the Farseer cast Guide and Doom on a selected enemy unit, then use the Biel-Tan Strat "Wrath of Shrines" and the generic Strat "Bladestorm." With full-rerolls to Hit and double-exploding 6s to Hit (from the two Strats), they should average around 40 hits. Against anything T6-T7, with full re-rolls to Wound and "Shredding Fire" ability, they will average a minimum of about 20 x AP-4 Dmg1 wounds (so easily a dead Predator, Devil Fish, Raider, Daemon Prince, etc.). Against T4 4++ infantry (say a unit of Bladeguard Veterans), they will average 30 AP-2/-4 wounds, so 15 unsaved wounds after 4++ saves, meaning 5 dead Bladeguard. Even against T5 infantry, like Crises Suits or Gravis marines, they average 20 AP-2/-4 wounds, so somewhere between 15-18 unsaved wounds (depending on how many shots become AP-4), so about 4 dead Crises suits or 5-6 dead Gravis Marines. You can only imagine what they will do to T3 hordes... Bottom line, aside from T8 tanks and monsters, there are very few targets that they cannot obliterate with just the help of a Farseer and two 1CP Strats, they can take out a large majority of potential targets in the game, all at the very bargain price of 145 points for a squad of 10... Oh, and they can do all this and still do actions, thanks to their unique "Defensive Tactics" ability.

 

 

3 - Striking Scorpions with Custom Craftworld Traits "Savage Blades" and "Vengeful" custom Craftworld Traits and "Crushing Blows" Exarch power/Biting Blade on the Exarch -- So, Striking Scorpions by themselves are already pretty flat-out amazing in the new Codex, especially in terms of damage output (a 10 man squad puts out 36 x S5 AP-1 Dmg1 attacks and 7 x S5 AP-2 Dmg2 attacks, all with exploding 6s to Hit and 6s to Wound causing MWs against non-vehicles/non-Monsters). Add in these custom Craftworld Traits and now all of these attacks gain an additional -1 AP when they charge and the whole unit now gets DOUBLE exploding 6s to Hit. Finally, if you add in a nearby Farseer with Guide and Doom and the Warlord Trait "Ambush of Blades" to gives them ANOTHER -1 AP for their attacks and you suddenly have a unit that hits with 36 x S5 AP-3 Dmg1 attacks, 7 x S5 AP-4 Dmg2 attacks (that auto-wound if they hit), all of which gets three hits for every to Hit roll of 6, does a MW on every to Wound roll of 6, and also has full re-rolls to Hit and to Wound for all their close combat attacks. Imperial Knights, Custodes, juiced up Tau Battle-suits, Tyranid Crusher Stampede with 5++ and -1Dmg, nothing is safe from being mulched by a single squad of Striking Scorpions outfitted like this! For the cherry on top, they can infiltrate pre-game for free, have a 3+/5++ natively, and even can fall back and charge using the "Feigned Retreat" Strat if they need to.

Edited March 20, 2022 by L30n1d4s

[MadEdric]

Got a second game in. Learning this army will take time, but it is a fun one.

Strands of Fate and Ulthwé makes good synergy. I usually tried for 3’s and 6’s, having them for psychic and saves. This allowed me to get most powers off very easily, and with Ulthwé getting a 6++, this means they can make any clutch save needed.

This helped my Wraith Lord facing Eradicators, as I was able to basically auto pass one save against them.

Speaking of Wraith Lords, these guys are wicked tough. Bolter Fire just bounced off him, D2 weapons getting reduced to 1. A well placed Tears of Iisha to bump him up, plus not degrading. Plus the before mentioned Strands save if you got them.

Ulthwé psychic phase is busy, and potent. You start with +1 on your first cast, then you have Eldrad, then you have a Seer Council. Add in Strand rerolls, that is busy. I was running Eldrad, a Farseer, a warlock Skyrunner, and a 5 man Warlock Council. Getting 8 casts a round from 4 sources, 9 if you use the strat.

Taking a Banshee Exarch with Mirror Blades and Peircing Strikes is incredibly powerful for a 15 point upgrade. This girl chewed through anything she hit, it was even worth the 2 cp spent when the squad was wiped out around her. She is that good.

I’m still pleased with our grav tanks. Both Falcon and Fire Prism were putting out reliable fire power. The Pulse Laser buff is fantastic.

I run 2 Wave Serpents, one with twin Bright Lance, and one with twin Star Cannons. Both worked nicely as roving gun boats after they dropped off their cargoes of Banshees and Storm Guardians. The Bright Lance Serpent even getting a cheeky Strands boosted shot to Alpha strike an Impulsor.

I am really enjoying this codex. It really feels like every phase is something Craftworlds can muscles in some type of option of boost.

[The Yncarne]

Played my first game in 6 months today. 1500 vs Emperor’s Children. Took a Light Saedeth and it was tight until the bottom of the third when my opponent conceded. I found the list perhaps a bit more potent than what I was expecting.

[Prot]

 I am still playing Ulthwé amd had a win vs Genesetealer Cult. I felt bad for my opponent as he failed every 8”, rerollable charge on his turn 2 stranding him and although it was a crushing win on paper, it would have been incredibly different if he had hit home with even a third of his charges especially with the Aborrants. 
 

anyway a few notes so far…. And some good thoughts above. 
- just still love Ulthwé… Eldrad just feels perfect. Similar to Tigurius but with Fraser perks. 

- the new Warlock models are amazing, but aside from scoring purposes, I’m not sure they’re mandatory. 

- I am notoriously negative on vehicles this edition, but with the fragility of our units, I find one Wave Serpent mandatory.  I used to arm mine with Brightlances but there’s no point… I arm it with Shuriken Cannons now. 

- a lot of items still feel a little over pointed, but some units are clearly more powerful than maybe the rest of the codex.  Can say I will not play Baharoth against my play groups. Yet as much as I love the new Dark Reapers they really are underwhelming.  

- I’m still forcing myself to play Battalions with 2 squads of Guardians. It certainly does seem to be a disadvantage and I understand why we aren’t seeing them in competitive armies. This still strikes me as incredibly wrong. As I finish assembling my second squad if Guardians, I’m honestly considering a third box of just Storm Guardians with the shield. Neither unit can be shot at, but at least one can hide in your zone with an invulnerable. 

- squad size. I’m kind of stuck here. I’m trying to play what I own but my three man bike squads are horrible. I’m having a lot of difficulty with scoring secondaries. I’m trying to strike a difficult balance between having a fun list that’s fluffy, Gaurdian based yet still capable of scoring. 
 

still a really fun codex and much more enjoyable to play with and against than I anticipated.  

[Dr. Clock]

- I’m still forcing myself to play Battalions with 2 squads of Guardians. It certainly does seem to be a disadvantage and I understand why we aren’t seeing them in competitive armies. This still strikes me as incredibly wrong. As I finish assembling my second squad if Guardians, I’m honestly considering a third box of just Storm Guardians with the shield. Neither unit can be shot at, but at least one can hide in your zone with an invulnerable. 

 

- squad size. I’m kind of stuck here. I’m trying to play what I own but my three man bike squads are horrible. I’m having a lot of difficulty with scoring secondaries. I’m trying to strike a difficult balance between having a fun list that’s fluffy, Gaurdian based yet still capable of scoring.

 

I think guardians could work okay in large amounts, but I'd more or less assume that that'd be essentially 2 chonky units in a Webway Strike and then drop one turn 2 and one turn 3. I'd definitely be looking to combo 20 Storms with 4 fusion and a '2 on Strands' out of Webway with at least an Empower on them from a skyrunner 'lock. They have enough weight of fire or attacks to make a difference, and with Fortune, Protect or Conceal they can be plenty tanky (for eldar infantry). The extra level of psychic support does make that kind of list tougher to use than aspect lists... as aspects are pretty darn self sufficient in what they do.

 

But don't forget the other ObSec! 2 Guardians + 2 Rangers will give you lots of scoring options, and whereas 5 DA in a falcon used to be an easy buy for speedy scoring, I like 5 power sword Corsairs in that role for cheap mounted scoring as well.

 

In sum I think the trick to Guardians is 'in transports or Deepstrike'. Looking to have them hit the board in turn 2 or 3 should hopefully let them connect before they get wiped in return, but backing their play with psychics is critical too.

 

Are those 3-man bikes Windriders or Shroudrunners? I use 5-man laser windriders and they are a pretty good blaster unit... I probably wouldn't bother with units of 3 normal bikes - 5 is solid though. As discussed earlier I think of Shroudrunners as early backline screeners and only opportunistic scorers. Very easy to get them killed for no benefit, but that's true of almost anything in the list.

 

Cheers,

 

The Good Doctor.

[The Yncarne]

I’ve seen a few people here using corsairs as troops, but I thought you could only run corsairs in a corsairs-only detachment. Am I mistaken?

[Karhedron]

I’ve seen a few people here using corsairs as troops, but I thought you could only run corsairs in a corsairs-only detachment. Am I mistaken?

 

Thy can only be used to meet minimum Troop requirements in an all-Corsair detachment. You can still run then in a regular Batallion if you have your mandatory 3 Troops satisfied.

[Plague _Lord]

Any one tried out the new shining spears?

[Prot]

Any one tried out the new shining spears?

I have not.  Personally I’m dying for the new models. That’ll be my personal motivation for painting them.  I believe they might be up for preorder this weekend?

[The Yncarne]

Any one tried out the new shining spears?

 

I was trying to find the post, but somebody mentioned they aren't as good as previously, but slightly better in Saim Hann.

[Xenith]

I have been looking at our Secondary Objectives and I think that leveraging these is going to be the key to our success. 

 

The increasing WC one is a copy/paste of the Thousand Sons Mutate Landscape objective. It's a solid choice for sons, as you have psykers in every unit and shennanigans to get out of dodge if needed - like perform action then auto cast sorcerous facade. With Eldar, you need to get a much more valuable sorcerer onto 5 objectives to max this out, and then leave them there unless you have another way of moving them. 2x single jetbike warlocks would be great to guarantee scoring this, advance one onto the objective, cast, then have the other quicken them back off it into safety. 

[Plague _Lord]

 

Any one tried out the new shining spears?

I have not.  Personally I’m dying for the new models. That’ll be my personal motivation for painting them.  I believe they might be up for preorder this weekend?

 

 

 

Same here. I adore the new scuplts and even like the GW paintjob.

 

I'm just wondering if that 9" consolidation power is as good as it seems on paper.