What've We Got Here?
So, I decided to take a look at what I currently have on hand for my Dark Eldar and see what I can make out of it. I've been putting this off for a little while. I hadn't looked at my Dark Eldar for quite some time and I didn't realize how few bodies I had left. I got rid of my Wyches and Reavers years ago (traded with a guy for my Chaos Knights, he was trying to start a Wyche army for his girlfriend.) Then I gave my Dark Eldar to a friend in hopes she would start playing. It never really went anywhere and they were damaged in a move before I got them back. They've since been through at least one more move. I remember hearing somewhere that three moves are equal to one fire in terms of losing or damaging items. I used to have a lot more of these guys, and I wasn't sure I'd be able to make anything of them without spending a good amount of money. Money I don't really have right now. In any case, I've been putting it off for a while, but I finally gritted my teeth, sat down and tallied it all up. This is what it comes to...

Archon
2x Haemonculus
18xKabalite Warrior w/Splinter Rifle
5xKabalite Warrior w/Blaster
2xKabalite Warrior w/Dark Lance
5xKabalite Warrior w/Splinter Cannon
7xSybarite (pistol and some sort of CCW)
Wych Hekatrix (pistol and some sort of CCW)
8xRaider or Ravager
1xVenom
2xTalos (could also be used as Cronos Pain Engine)

The Warriors could be Kabalite Warriors with no modification at all, of course. They could also be Trueborn if I did something to differentiate them (I haven't come up with any specific ideas, yet.) They could also be Scourges, though I'd have to give them wings. In addition, the Sybarites could be used as Trueborn (pistol and CCW) or even Dracons if I were so inclined. I could easily add in vehicle weaponry (Dark Lances are fairly easy to get hold of and can be fabricated fairly easily as well) or wargear (Blast pistols are pretty easy to simulate) to improve things here or there.

Looking at the above list, I have lots of anti-tank, but not much anti-troop. (That's pretty much how my old DE airforce used to run. Antitank is also effective against heavy infantry, and almost all of my targets were Space Marine equivalents.) Now, I think I'll require a more balanced mix, but we'll see what I can put together first.

Kabal Rillishelwe Mor Rides Again 2000pts
140 Archon w/Agonizer, Blast pistol, Haywire grenades, Combat Drugs, Shadowfield
220 2 Haemonculi each w/Webway Portal, Liquifier gun, Agonizer

146 3 Trueborn w/2 Dark Lances in a Raider w/Dark Lance, Flickerfield
128 4 Trueborn w/2 Splinter Cannon in a Raider w/Dark Lance, Flickerfield
128 4 Trueborn w/2 Splinter Cannon in a Raider w/Dark Lance, Flickerfield

165 4xKabalite Warriors w/Blaster and Sybarite w/Blast Pistol, Agonizer in a Raider w/Dark Lance, Flickerfield
165 4xKabalite Warriors w/Blaster and Sybarite w/Blast Pistol, Agonizer in a Raider w/Dark Lance, Flickerfield
165 4xKabalite Warriors w/Blaster and Sybarite w/Blast Pistol, Agonizer in a Raider w/Dark Lance, Flickerfield
165 4xKabalite Warriors w/Blaster and Sybarite w/Blast Pistol, Agonizer in a Raider w/Dark Lance, Flickerfield
170 4xKabalite Warriors w/Blaster and Sybarite w/Blast Pistol, Agonizer in a Venom with 2 Splinter Cannon

115 Ravager: 3xDisintegrator Cannon, Flickerfield
110 Talos, Chain Flails
110 Talos, Chain Flails

1997pts.

Models remaining: no splinter rifles, no blasters, no dark lances, 1 Splinter Cannon, no Sybarites, Hekatrix. No vehicles left. Pretty efficient use of my models!

9 Dark Lances, 5 Blasters, 6 Blast pistols, 3 Disintegrator Cannon, 8 Splinter Cannon. That's a lot of Dakka. Archon, 2 Haemonculi, 5 Sybarites with Agonizers, 2 Talos. Not terrible close combat, though it's certainly not amazing.

I could replace some of the Raider Dark Lances with Disintegrator Cannon for more anti-troop firepower, but I may want to see how it plays first.

That Looks Familiar, and Efficiency
Interestingly, the troop squads are very similar to the price and effectiveness of my old ones. They used to have Splinter Cannons, but their splinter rifles end up being about as effective as the old Splinter Cannons were. The primary difference is that they won't be able to shoot, then assault like they used to, at least not as effectively. Initially, I hadn't given the Sybarites Agonizers or other weapons to make them effective in assault, but I had some points left over and decided to investigate the option. Is it worthwhile? Quick, to the calculator! An Agonizer on a Sybarite will hit a Space Marine (what else?) 1/2 the time and Wound 1/2 the time and ignore armor saves. With 4 attacks on the charge, that's 1 Dead Space Marine. That's worth 15pts if you use it just that one time. If you survive to use it the next round, it'll have paid for itself. Sounds worthwhile to me, bring on the Agonizers! Similarly, I compared the Chain Flails and Additional CCW for the Taloses. Each option gives an average of 1 extra attack per round of assault. 15 points for an extra Monstrous Creature attack at WS5 S7 I4 is certainly worthwhile, but 10pts is even better! If I had extra points, I might even take both.

This list has a bit more wargear and equipment than I normally use. This is partly due to a lack of models on my part, but I think that all the extra stuff will justify itself quite easily.

Where Do I Put This?
I did wrestle with the idea of the Webway Portals for the Taloses. Without the portals, the Taloses start on the board and might distract an opponent from more important targets. On the other hand, most smart generals will know that they can afford to ignore the Taloses for a couple of turns, so it won't be a reliable enough distraction. On the other hand, combining the Haemonculi with the portals makes them much more of a target. (Also, having 2 of them with portals gives me a better chance for one to survive to open it.) On the other hand, the Archon is already going to be a big target. Adding a portal to him would just solidify most foes' first choice of target.

Okay, Make with the Working
Okay, so how does it all work? The basis of the list is distributed power. There are very few real concentrations of power, which means that it will make enemy target selection more difficult, and losing 1 squad or vehicle isn't a big loss. Basically, the Archon and the Haemonculi will start in one of the Troop Raiders, with another Raider acting as cover for them. The Dark Lance sniper squad camps out in cover. (Its empty Raider will be one of the cover Raiders.) Everything moves up and I start trying to divest the enemy army of its vehicles. As vehicles pop open, squads (and characters) nearby will assault the contents, while squads not close enough to assault an enemy squad will add their fire to that of the various Splinter Cannon to thin the enemy squad down before they get assaulted. Ideally, I'd like to weaken them enough that the assaulting squad will take 2 assault phases to kill them off, leaving them free to act again in my next turn. Of course, that's ideal. I'll be happy if they take out more than their numbers when they die.

Is this the best Dark Eldar list ever? That seems unlikely. There are a few things that I'd like to switch around when I have the chance. (The two main ones: I'd like to use more Venoms and I'd like to use some Reavers.) Even with those switches, it's probably not the bestest ever, but I think it's pretty good as-is, and will get better with some tweaking. It fits my models, it fits my style and, most importantly, I like it!

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