Now I will not simply dog on an Autarch without discussing some of their finer points. Farseers are just my personal preference, but even I have a use for Autarchs and can appreciate their tactical benefits. In an increasingly non-linear game the Autarch is slowly becoming necessary. My side of the table does not fight your side anymore. Units can come in from anywhere or any side. A few even come up from beneath! The catch to this new found mobility is that these units must come in from reserve. The Eldar codex just happens to be one of the few 4th Edition codices that was prepared for thee rules changes and no unit helps you maximize your outflank/deep strike potential like an Autarch and his master strategist ability. Whether the Autarch is in play or not you may opt to add one to your reserves rolls. Have two Autarchs?? Why not go ahead and add two to reserves! This means that if you use Swooping Hawks and Skyleap you will be able to drop a grenade pack nearly every turn, coming in on a 2+ as early as turn 2!
Outside of that handy ability the Autarch is a pretty solid warrior and will generally end up being cheaper than a Farseer after upgrades. The trick is to know what you want to use your Autarch for and choose wargear appropriately. Your choice of mobility upgrade is generally up to you. Which flavor of moving 12” across the battlefield do you like? Allow me to break it down. Swooping Hawk wings are the cheapest, but least mobile. You only get the Jump Infantry 12” move. Both the wings and the Warp Jump Generator allow you to deep strike, but the Warp Jump Generator also allows for an albeit risky 2d6” extra move in the assault phase. If you roll doubles however, kiss your Autarch good-bye. If you choose the Warp Jump Generator it’s best to run him with Warp Spiders to maximize the ability and cushion him from instant and certain death at the hands of Warp Beasts. The Jetbike is the most expensive choice, but for good reason. You get the 12” move; also you get to turbo-boost 24” and the Eldar Jetbike 6” assault move. Combine that with the increase in toughness and the relentless quality and the Jetbike makes for an excellent choice. As for choice of helmet, the Banshee mask is near useless. The Autarch comes standard with plasma grenades and you’ll rarely need an initiative higher than six. The mandiblasters are a much better choice, but if you need to save points 3 base attacks may be plenty. Statistically vs. Space Marines (and variants) the Power weapon ends up being the better choice. You will kill roughly 0.887 space Marines with your 4 attacks (+1 for pistol and close combat weapon) with the power weapon over 0.439 kills using the Scorpion Chain Sword. If your opponent is playing Orks you may want to go with the Scorpion Chainsword and it will give you some potential against monstrous creatures, but for most targets the Power Weapon is the way to go. The Laser lance can be awesome, but it is still only good on the turn you assault. Also, Autarchs cannot hit and run like Shining Spears so you may very well end up tar pitting your now very expensive HQ if you are not careful. Choose targets wisely. That said, with proper wargear you can have 6 Strength 6 power weapon attacks on the charge. As for your choice of ranged weaponry, the choice is yours. Keep in mind your goal and pick the right weapon for the job.
A few thoughts on ranged weapons before I go:
• An Autarch with a Shuriken Catapult in a squad of Dire Avengers can Bladestorm
• Jetbikes are relentless and a Reaper Launcher is a Heavy Weapon
"How little you understand the Eldar. You have stepped into our snare. Do not expect to escape it alive."
6/3/10
Farseers vs. Autarchs
A friend of mine recently took a tour of the Craftworld so to speak when he started assembling an Eldar force of his own. One of our early discussions was over which is better, a Farseer or an Autarch. His position was that the martial prowess of the Autarch was superior to the psychic wizardry of a Farseer. I accused him of thinking like a mon keigh (okay I said Space Marine, but I don’t want to estrange any Space Marine players out there.) Indeed, it was true that when I began playing Eldar I consider the Farseer to be nothing more than a wizard, sitting back and casting spells. I was befuddled on how to effectively use this HQ unit in my army and often ran a stripped down Farseer just to fill the Force Org. Slot. It wasn’t until, after a two year sabbatical from the game and the 4th Edition Eldar codex was released, that I truly began to walk the Path of the Seer.
Like the codex itself, running a Farseer takes skill. At its core you have a potent support unit. The ability to re-roll almost every major die roll in the game can not be overlooked. Certainly with codex creep and a clear push by the powers that be to enhance psychic powers within 5th edition the Eldar have competition, but still no other army holds a candle to the reliability and utility that a Farseer brings to the table.
We are all familiar with what Doom and Guide can do for a Dire Avenger Bladestorm (If you are not familiar, try it, it’s pretty awesome) but consider using other psychic power combinations on other units. Consider what fortune and doom used to augment a Howling Banshee assault might do to your opponent. Fortune and guide your Fire Dragons before they go after that Land Raider and make sure it is destroyed.
You should be casting two psychic powers per Farseer per turn (and a third from Eldrad if he’s on the table) There is nothing to be afraid of. With Runes of Witnessing, Ghosthelms and the potential for a Warlock with the embolden power you really don’t need to be concerned with perils of the warp or even failing a psychic test for that matter. The only anti-psyker wargear that causes me to think about casting a psychic power is the psychic hood and only turns into a roll-off between you and your opponent.
It’s for these reasons, the overall army enhancement and the reliability of such enhancement that I use Farseers over Autarchs.
Like the codex itself, running a Farseer takes skill. At its core you have a potent support unit. The ability to re-roll almost every major die roll in the game can not be overlooked. Certainly with codex creep and a clear push by the powers that be to enhance psychic powers within 5th edition the Eldar have competition, but still no other army holds a candle to the reliability and utility that a Farseer brings to the table.
We are all familiar with what Doom and Guide can do for a Dire Avenger Bladestorm (If you are not familiar, try it, it’s pretty awesome) but consider using other psychic power combinations on other units. Consider what fortune and doom used to augment a Howling Banshee assault might do to your opponent. Fortune and guide your Fire Dragons before they go after that Land Raider and make sure it is destroyed.
You should be casting two psychic powers per Farseer per turn (and a third from Eldrad if he’s on the table) There is nothing to be afraid of. With Runes of Witnessing, Ghosthelms and the potential for a Warlock with the embolden power you really don’t need to be concerned with perils of the warp or even failing a psychic test for that matter. The only anti-psyker wargear that causes me to think about casting a psychic power is the psychic hood and only turns into a roll-off between you and your opponent.
It’s for these reasons, the overall army enhancement and the reliability of such enhancement that I use Farseers over Autarchs.
6/1/10
First Post and Introductions
Greetings Farseers and Autarchs,
This is to be the first of hopefully many posts in my brand new Eldar blog! Enjoy pointy eared xenos in the gothic universe, this is the place for you. Look forward to Battle Reports, Tactics, Fiction, Army Lists, and Pictures in the near future.
So I guess I should introduce myself, I am Bowen, or Shaolindisciple over at www.mi40k.com, and I've been playing Eldar since about 2003. Back then Warhammer was a completely different game and the Eldar were my first army. I was drawn in by the Falcon I must admit, an excellent model. 40k was in the midst of third edition, like I said, it was a different game. Two editions later and I still play my Eldar. The rules have changed, the way I play my army has changed, and over the years I've collected almost the entire Eldar model range and have run every kind of list from grav tank spam to foot slogging aspect warriors. After all this time I am still trying new tricks and tactics. I play in tournaments occasional and frequent hobby shops and gaming stores in the Southeast Michigan area. Well anyways, that's me and again welcome.
This is to be the first of hopefully many posts in my brand new Eldar blog! Enjoy pointy eared xenos in the gothic universe, this is the place for you. Look forward to Battle Reports, Tactics, Fiction, Army Lists, and Pictures in the near future.
So I guess I should introduce myself, I am Bowen, or Shaolindisciple over at www.mi40k.com, and I've been playing Eldar since about 2003. Back then Warhammer was a completely different game and the Eldar were my first army. I was drawn in by the Falcon I must admit, an excellent model. 40k was in the midst of third edition, like I said, it was a different game. Two editions later and I still play my Eldar. The rules have changed, the way I play my army has changed, and over the years I've collected almost the entire Eldar model range and have run every kind of list from grav tank spam to foot slogging aspect warriors. After all this time I am still trying new tricks and tactics. I play in tournaments occasional and frequent hobby shops and gaming stores in the Southeast Michigan area. Well anyways, that's me and again welcome.
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