Dark eldar, Choosing a viable HQ.

                        

Cute or not, he's coming for that booty

So the foremost thought that has been occupying my mind when it comes to playing my 7'th Edition Dark Eldar against EVERYONE, is what HQ i want to run. 

It used to be so easy, didn't it? You took an archon, gave him a huskblade, a ghostplate armour,a shadowfield,possible a soultrap for some bling. Tossed him in the back of a venom with some trueborns that all had CC weapons. And tried to watch your opposing players reaction as he kept the hell away from it. It wasn't easy, it is never EASY, you were running a glass cannon into a wall of fire (and later, overwatch) but you had a AP2 badass that could easily get back his points in TEQ kills. 

Now, now you have no AP2 on your archon, you can't take a ghostplate (not that 4+/6++ was ever going to save your ass) and your trueborn are all stuck running one CC weapon with a splinterrifle. 

But is it all doom and gloom? Is it simply the old "New things suck, hallowed be the tenets of the old guard?".Hell if i know. I've played DE for less than a year. Two editions in one year, but still. 

But i do have difficulties getting a good working HQ. So let's see what my options are. 

ole' trusty

Your Archon

You know him, as a rule he/she/jaded-monstrosity-transcending-human-notions-of-gender is most DE players first HQ choice. And it is kind of hard to make it work. You get a stellar statline that epitomizes the fragile yet hard-hitting nature of "your guys". I7 is beautifull thing regardless, usually letting you hit faster than even craftworlder hillbillies. Bad things? you roll S3,T3 and have a 5+. Still with 60 pts base you have a few choices. 

• I WILL make you hit shit.

Get an archon. give him a shadowfield (2++ that, if you fail, you lose it after that phase) get a huskblade,take an armour of misery,add a soultrap put him with some incubi in a venom. Congrats, you have a 150pts DECENT beatstick. AS a comparison, that is the cost of a terminator Captain WITH some gear. Or a flyrant. Or a Jetseer. I'm not saying you are screwed, this is DE, you will have a chance. But 2+ is pretty common on HQ's so keep that in mind. The soultrap will increase your S by 1 with each unsaved wound in a challenge (it used to double it, but still 10 pts) so if you stab a 2W Char. You have S5, which is good against MOST things. The 2++ is a good insurance against overwatch, and CC hits. Look out for those 1's. And try to have a FnP. The Armour of misery does not only give you a 4+/6++ it gives your opponent -2 LD in 12". Which is handy for challenges and tarpits. 

• I came here to laugh at you. 

And you WILL. Get an archon, give him a webway portal, and a shadowfield (if wanted) with a blaster. Put him with about nine trueborns and a dracon with haywire grenade. 135pts for your archon and 163 points of Trueborns. Shoot your FIVE blasters and throw Haywire grenades for seasoning. Arguably you just take a venom and ignore the Shadowfield and Webway portal. But i feel that the troll factor is at MAXIMUM with the previous set-up. Jump in, BLAST EVERYTHING, Hide in a crater and let your wounds soak up damage as the rest of your army does everything. I've wiped suitsgroups, tyranid artillery, and Black templar LR parkingslots with this. And, granted, your HQ will die. It will happen. But as true comorrite it bothers you not, you can DRINK that sweet agony of your opponent. 

Or just put six trueborns in a venom, blasterborn are old but trusty ports in a stormy night. 

Front heavy joke. Ap2 is heavy :D

Succubi

Just making noise here, i haven't finished my succubi, so i'm just making assumptions here. But still this is what i'd do. 

A shooting succubi isn't just NOT viable, it is simply not possible. And why would you have one?

with 75 base you have WS8(!) I8(!!) and a 4++ in CC base. Also a 1/6 chance of getting +1T/+1S/+1A. Which are the ones i can see being actually usefull. Still, no Archon's retinue, a 6+ save and no shadowfield or clonefield availability. You can buy a armour of misery. Which is kind of it. If you run a Succubus, put her with something heavy. You can Deepstrike with a WEbway portal, but with no shooting you're an even GREATER sitting duck than the Archon. 

still, all is not shatner. 

Succubus, Archite glaive,armor of misery, and an agonizer? 

135 pts for a minimum of five attacks AP2, or six attacks with the agonizer poisoned 4+ (as opposed to the S3 hits on archite glaives that will limit you to averaging on 5+ against MEQ) it is pretty cheap, and I8 will usually let you hit first, and with average i means that 60 percent of the time, it works ALL the time. 

I'll try to put her in an venom with some incubi, and charge EVERYTHING. It will probably work even better if she is underestimated.

The Friend nobody everybody likes 

Hugging you or measuring out his new organ bank?

BOTH!

The noble horrifying Haemonculus. Or haemonc. A viable alternative anyday. HQ tax, unit improver, special tool. The Haemonculus can do most of it. 

statline is....meh, if compared to the other two. Toughness 4 and 3W means you will probably survive three turns. Probably. You get a FnP Base, which kind of mitigates the 6+ save. He also hands out PvP +1. Which doesn't mean that he can PvP someone, but rather that your unit has one better on the Power from pain. IE. 6+FnP for the unit on Turn 1, Straight FnP on Turn two, and so on. If you manage to succesfully get a animus vitae hit on turn one or two, good for you. It, like so many other succulent tidbits of DE trolling has so far eluded me. But it would mean furious charge on turn two, instead of four,which sounds nice. Still 70 pts base.

Running a coven list makes him your ONLY choice, but on turn two you get fearless. And on turn four you get "it will not die" which is... cute, or GREAT on a grotesque, talos or chronos. Want to know more? Buy the book, yes it is annoying, yes, it makes your army viable on a different scale, but the covens book is damn good. And worth your money, plastic crack is going to ruin your life, but with DE you at least know HOW it will ruin your financial freedom. 

• 'Mandatory tax. Hexrifle. Yes. That is it, yes it is a sniper rifle that has ID on a six to hit. Yay. But still. Put him in a boat that rides around and let something live a bit longer. It lets your army have more points. DONE
• Anti-Psyker hilarity-ensues: Haemonculus, with a crucible of malediction,webway portal, and something to soak wounds. Preferably Grotesques, in a Grotesquerie (which have a 1/3 to get +1T) Deepstrike without scattering. Open your "kin-gift" ALL Psykers, brotherhood of psykers, and sorcerers within 3d6 get a S6 hit, NO-SAVES-ALLOWED. Yes, this is the chance that manages to elude me. Kill that seers council, Kill warlocks, kill all eldar psykers with your ID Gift. And wound MEQ on a 2+. And laugh, add a Liquifier to get a good "wall of death" when they inevitably charge your pale ass. 140 pts of hilarity added.
• Bitey-tax: Get a haemonculus, give him a liquifier,a scissorhand(4+ poison and rending) and an agonizer (ap 3,4+ poison) add an armour of misery. 135 pts, for 5 attacks with rending or AP3 after flavor. Screw the scissor hand (possibly) enjoy.

Regardless i usually pick up a animus vitae for my archon, it means that i get a S4 AP2 8" that (if wounding) gives the ENTIRE army +1 PvP for 20 pts. Goes well with the Shadowfield or clonefield, meaning that i have no GREAT need of a Ghostplate.

Now, since what i usually do doesn't work, i will probably try a succubus next time ,throw her in a Venom. Have her assault something with a bunch of Incubi, i'll tell you what happens :D