Countdown to Counter Offensive 2: Dark Eldar  by Kenton Kilgore
The last time I played my Dark Eldar, I went with a Troop-heavy, shooty list that hung back and took pot shots at Ultra-Good Guy Yann Folange’s Banshee-heavy Eldar. For Counter Offensive 2, I thought I’d go back to what had worked well for me before: an assault-happy list designed around using the Evil (and Nigh-Cheesy) webway portal.

“Jack-in-the-Box From Hell”: 1496 points 
Usually, I include a lot of Raider Squads in my Dark Eldar army, but this time, I’ve sacrificed them to load up on close-combat monsters.

• Archon Syryx Lynatharr w/ power weapon, Reaver jetbike, combat drugs, shadow field, hell mask, and trophy rack (170 points)
• Dr. Jheste (Haemonculus) w/ stinger and webway portal (80 points)
• Silver Scorpions. Succubus Blygos w/ agonizer, splinter pistol, and trophy rack; two Wyches w/ shredders; seven Wyches w/ wych weapons (183 points); Raider w/ dark lance and horrorfex (60 points)
• Handmaidens. Succubus Phaedra w/ agonizer and splinter pistol; eight Wyches w/ wych weapons (145 points); Raider w/ dark lance and horrorfex (60 points)
• Beastmaster Wormwood and five Warp Beasts (75 points)
• Raider Squad A. Six Warriors w/ splinter rifles; one Warrior w/ blaster; one Warrior w/ shuriken cannon (79 points); Raider w/ dark lance and horrorfex (60 points)
• Raider Squad B. Six Warriors w/ splinter rifles; one Warrior w/ blaster; one Warrior w/ shuriken cannon (79 points); Raider w/ dark lance and horrorfex (60 points)
• Lynatharr’s Guards. Three Reavers w/ bike-mounted splinter rifles; two Reavers w/ bike-mounted blasters (145 points)
• Three Taloses (100 points each)

Above: Handmaidens, a.k.a. the Callous Drowboy Cheerleaders

I’ve organized the army into two asymmetrical parts: the close-combat units (the vast majority) tucked inside a webway portal, waiting to strike; and a few units starting out on the table to deploy the portal. 

Few hand-to-hand fighters are as fearsome as a tricked-out Archon: I give mine the Nigh-Obligatory shadow field and combat drugs, then provide a jetbike for mobility, hell mask to (hopefully) put his opponents at a disadvantage to hit him, a trophy rack to bolster his confidence (DE are lacking in high Leadership) and a power weapon for some prison-style lovin’. Why not an agonizer? Because with the bike and my Main Man’s usual drug cocktail, he has Strength 5, which wounds better against Toughness 4 and under. 

My Archon is accompanied by five Reavers, two of whom have blasters for dealing with pesky vehicles. Mostly, the Reavers are along to catch bullets and provide backup. More serious hitting power is found in the two squads of Wyches, armed with wych weapons, of course. Both squads are led by Succubi with agonizers (one of the sweetest close-combat weapons in the game). One squad also has shredders for blowing holes in large enemy squads before charging. 

The Wyches are mounted on Raiders packing dark lances, to deal with vehicles. A squad of Warp Beasts serves well for assaulting enemy shooters and holding them in close combat until slower, hard-hitting hand-to-hand units (such as the Taloses) arrive. Lots of DE players sneer at the Talos for being slow, but it’s tough, hits like a sledgehammer, and is dirt-cheap for what you get. I take three because my army’s theme involves scorpions and the Talos looks like a big metal scorpion. That, and because no one can ignore three Taloses dropped into their lap. 

As mentioned, all of these units lurk in the webway portal. My Haemonculus, Dr. Jheste, carries the portal and starts out on the board. He is accompanied by two units of Raider-mounted Warriors whose sole job is to deliver Jheste into position and guard him so that he can open the portal as if were a jack-in-the-box full of close-combat maniacs. 

Once that task is accomplished, Jheste can step out of the way and stay safe, while the Warriors continue the fight. Each squad packs a splinter cannon, good for taking out infantry, and a blaster, which—combined with the dark lances on the Raiders—should help deal with vehicles. In proper Dark Eldar fashion, it matters little whether the Warriors kill any of the enemy—or even survive—so long as Jheste is successful.

(How did this army do at Counter Offensive 2? Find out here)
 

Related Pages 
Counter Offensive
Counter Offensive 2
 

© Copyright Kenton Kilgore, August 2005
 

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