Anywho, my limited recent painting time has resulted in me finishing the Anointed that comes with the Phoenix kit. Here he is hanging with some Phoenix Guard posse I painted up at the same time to keep him company
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The beauty of plastering walls is that they provide a convenient white back drop so I can get in some half decent pics!
This isn't my favourite model TBH...I think it screams "over designed" in a way that GW can sometimes be guilty of now that they are using fancy computer designing software stuff. It's the little things like the scarf on the halberd not flowing in any particular direction - when there is also a belt scarf that they could have worked with to give the models some feeling, the pointy things on the shoulder pads etc etc. Sitting next to some Phoenix Guard (who I quite like) he looks a wee bit out of place.
Oh well, it was fun to paint I guess. I'm getting to that stage where my paint scheme is a little zzzz to paint, but still works so I'm happy with it.
New Dark Elves
Just a small piece of news for those internet users who like WHFB who dont keep up - the Dark Elves have been released. I bought the ipad ebook thing and I was a little disappointed with the presentation. They combined the fluff for each entry with the model gallery meaning both sections felt a little...empty. Compare that to other army ebooks where the fluff sections are full of amazing artwork with a separate model gallery...heck I even think one (or two) of the pictures were from the High Elf book!
The background fluff was a little "meh" too. It read like a scheming, always frustrated, cartoon bad guy constantly having his schemes ruined by some stoned teenagers in a combi van...while his mum secretly is the real power behind the throne. I was hoping for (having never read Dark Elf fluff before) an entire re-writing of the High Elf fluff from a different perspective (we are the real good guys...this is our story of subtle fall into chaos etc etc)....not a blatant admission that the Dark Elves are the baddies *queue over-emphasising the evilness of everything* With all the daily casual slaughter it's amazing there are any Dark Elves left alive! I always pictured Malekith's downfall to be a little bit like Furion's...
Rules wise I like how it all kinda mirrors what the High Elves do. Warlocks are the new OP and as usual there are cool monsters and stuff. Moving Witch Elves to core is an interesting move that will scare Ogre players, but I suspect they could be a weee bit of a red herring given they have no armour, t3, s3 and frenzy...poison only goes so far. Executioners look awesome...but without stubborn or the Banner of World Dragon I think they are a little vulnerable to fluffed rolls...without any defence to wear the return attacks. ie I would rather pay the extra point for Whitelions.
For the MSU fans out there the Dark Elf book offers more options there, which is really cool as MSU needs to exist in some form other than "WoC monsters MSU Lolz"
Having read the rules I like the High Elves more cos we got phoenix, and usable new Lord and Hero choices + I think the High Elf troop choices are more exciting not just variations on "lots of s3/4 attacks".
High Elves vs Dark Elves
Big call here...I think the High Elves take this one out - but only just. After the first round of combat where Dark Elf hatred is awesome, Martial Prowess trumps Murderous Prowess. Dark Elves have few answers to the Phoenix, and none to Phoenix Guard. High Elf shooting should also win the shooting war given its range (and price) advantage. However, Cloak of twilight peg dreadlord, or Character-heavy Warlock bus will cause plenty of problems...so too will careful use of Dark Magic..though I'm unconvinced of its "all comers" application - at least it has more coherency than High Magic which is all over the place.
Woodies vs Dark Elves
Still a big win to the Woodies. 70shots/turn + dwellers + double treeman + dryads + eagles to catch the frenzy = yawn 20-0 win. I dont care if you have ASF and Murderous Prowess when you need 6's to wound...IF you make it to combat. Vanguarding Warlock bus = s4 shooting comes into play quicker :)
Anywho that's all from me. I have a game with the High Elves vs Mike King's Lizards tomorrow and I'll do up a battle report (I think my first with the new High Elves - only my 3rd game with them at 2400pts too!).
Lol All I read here was High Elves Fanboy Joel =). Dark Elves outshoot all other races with RXB, there are dozens of counters to phoenix in the book and most High Elf infantry blocks that are big enough to make use of martial Prowess will be reduced to numbers that cant take advantage of it in the first round.
ReplyDeleteAs for Wood Elves... well when was the last time that they won any game?
haha well yeah wee bit of a fan boy. re: HE v DE. 30 inch range vs 24 is the key here. HE can force enough modifiers to hit and have no real reason to move forward + having the armour to rush things that get too close. I dont see executioners making it across the board in any shape to take on 27 whitelions or 25 phoenix guard. My more technical break down is "whoever gets the miasma hex off wins...but without it after the 1st round High Elves have the advantage"...throw in a Frostie and it swings heavily to the High Elves.
DeleteWoodies were my first WHFB army and they have always had the best match ups vs other elves. What has hurt them is the walls of fast 1+ that is immune to KB...though in sayin that I have beaten WoC, empire and Ogres with them. Dark Elves has less defensive gear, so die quicker to the s4 bows, + dryads and treemen have survivability in their favour via either i6, t4/6 and wards vs whatever makes it through 210ish shots over 3 turns before the "combat" starts. The new Hydra regrowth makes it more survivable vs woodie monster killing...but now ldship 6, no-rerolls or handlers = I'm a lot more comfortable throwing a treeman at it after a round of shooting.
Given how badly Wood Elves destroyed Darkies last edition and how nothing has really changed in the t3 no armour save department, I totally agree on that front Joel
ReplyDeleteAs for High Elves, I dont think its that bad but the edge defo goes to the Darkies. HE Elites get decimated and Phoenixes are eaten by Witches, Exes and id guess Warlocks too.
I think the fact we have core Silverhelms and longer range shooting keeps us in it a bit but we lose in the combat department so badly its not funny
I think it comes down to planning your match ups and not just relying on Whitelions in High Elf armies. Dark Elf effectiveness ignores BOWD, so the Whitelions all of a sudden are a massive points liability if they are your only combat block.
DeletePhoenix Guard on the other hand were the real winners with the new book because they didnt lose anything...instead they gained an extra rank of attacks (and still combo really well with shadow magic). Focus your RBTs onto the executioners and they will quickly not be a big threat. Whitelions and frosties go after monsters. Witch elves are a "simple" frenzy bait and flank away from non-existence.
I really think the match up comes down to who gets the buffs/hexes. Sure High Elves need them more than the Dark Elves...but if you can hold the first round (hello stubborn/steadfast) and support charge = I think the High Elves will be able to swing the day.
Frosties do need to be careful what the go into, but if corner clipping = pretty safe from poison.
I dare you to bait and flank charge a horde of witches with a cauldron with anything other than cavalry then come back and tell me how it goes... its really not that simple :-P
DeleteMurderous Prowess is far superior to Martial. I've run the numbers on Spearelves going head to head. Under the old book, it was normally fairly even; ASF and extra rank cancelling out Eternal Hatred and cheaper troops. Now the round of Hatred will normally knock that extra rank off the High Elves, and then that extra reroll to wound is enough of an edge that Dark Elves will beat High Elves, all else being equal.
ReplyDeleteAnd Murderous Prowess is just so much more superior on Dreadlords and Masters. Throw in the mindlessness that is 6-8 points for a 5+ Scaly Skin and our Princes and Nobles just aren't in the same league.
I think the 30 inch range on shooting can be overstated. Multiple RBTs can exceed this, though we can take them too. However, 5 Dark Riders cost the same as 10 archers, have the same number of shots, a 4+ armour save and they have a 42" move and shoot vs 35". The modifier to hit for multi-shot is balanced by Armour Piercing. I wouldn't bank on a huge shooting advantage, not when 2 units of Dark Riders with stupidly cheap RXBs will likely be in most Dark Elf armies. I'm annoyed at such poor game design making a much superior choice to Reavers only cost 1 point more.
It's not all bad, and of course High Elves have many advantages over the drucchi. But Martial Prowess isn't one of them, nor is shooting likely to be as advantageous as you might think .
One other thing to factor in is that if Dark Elves are to succeed in the current meta they need to be tailoring heavily towards ripping up 1+ as = bringing a different set of tools compared to what they will need to bring vs us.
DeleteWarlocks MIGHT (read "here's hoping" ) have a short life span once DoC and WoC players start bringing a unit or 2 of slaanesh marked things as they become a points liability when Slaanesh chariots, Dprinces, etc start appearing across the table + they are another reason on top of every other reason as to why the lore of light is amaing.. Witch Elves dont really do much vs 1+ as and until they are deployed MSU with no cauldron they will be a point sink that will be led around the table.
High Elves on the other hand, due to BOWD, and easy access to s5+ have a natural "can-opening" nature (and immunity to the scary stuff) and I personally think we can write lists to accommodate both elite little armour and elite lots of armour...and I think including Phoenix Guard alongside White Lions will be the key to this + we have access to Loremasters for flexibility.
Oh and a plus for the Phoenix - no re-rolls to hit as it gives ASL and is not a high Elf = no hatred!
Oh, and I agree with your comment on the Anointed. A terrible model for exactly the reason you say; he's over-designed. It's like they said "How do we make this guy stand out? I know, wings are a Phoenix Guard thing, lets put wings on everything, on his helmet and shoulders. And double his halberd, because swinging two heavy blades on the end of a long pole is better than swinging one. And shape them like wings!"
ReplyDeleteNot their worst model, but not their best by a long shot. Bloody awful in fact.