The mechdar list is at a crossroads in it's construction. I will outline two options for HQ and dig a little into the pro's and cons of each. I would like to get some outside perspectives and hear what your choice would be.
The Eldar have been getting some table-in-the-garage playtesting lately and the army build stands at a crossroads. You get two HQ's and the choices on the table are 2 Autarchs or 1 Autarch & 1 Farseer. BTW, this list will focus on bringing the pain
all from reserve.
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| By the book, Private! |
Option 1: The natural inclination would be 2 Aut. Why, you ask? Well, you would get to add +2 to your reserve rolls, meaning you come in on a 2+ turn 2. Makes perfect sense for a list that depends on a cohesive alpha strike at a position on the table of your choosing. Very clean. You would also get two decent CC specialists or tank hunters (as Eldar go anyway). Downside with 2 Aut is that you have no psyk defense (or offense). Mind you, almost all of your units will be in tanks, so maybe psy defense isn't necessary. Your fate with shooting, wounding, and saves would be what the dice make. No second chances or rerolls. What you see is what you get. It's a very military purist stance. No mamby-pamby mentalists here. Surgical application of Eldar weapon technology - pure and simple.
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| Your lottery numbers are... |
Option 2: Shift gears and let's examine option two which involves 1 Aut and 1 Farseer. The Farseer, while slightly more points than an Autarch, gives you arguably the best psy defense in the game in Runes of Warding (psy test on 3d6, perils on 12 or more) and the ability to cast two psy powers from inside a tank. Because this list focuses on lots of shooting, Guide and Doom fit the bill. The Farseer's witchblade is a bonus if you find yourself in need of some S9 cc attacks against a vehicle but otherwise he's a thinker not a fighter. People swear by the buffs and synergies the Farseer creates. The brainy wizards aren't without their drawbacks though. With only 1 Aut you only get +1 to reserve rolls. It takes your rate of reserve failure from 1/6 to 1/3 - double the chance of failure. When you are counting on getting as much firepower on the board at once, this allows the cruel mistress of statistics to eat your lunch more often. With the proliferation of Librarians, you will also run into more instances of powers being denied. Your Guide/Doom combo might get shut down by a series of lucky hood rolls.
So, which seems to be the more appealing? For all you out-of-the-box thinkers, the double Farseer is not an option. That would kinda defeat the purpose of reserving everything for that cinematic alpha strike now wouldn't it?
