Ceynuundra Aelvari - Elven High Command

[abngi 2]

How can Reach cancel First Strike? Doesn't one give attack support bonuses to a friendly model in front, while the other negates strike-backs if the model hit is killed outright?

Reach cancels opposing First Strike.

[Cerridwyn1st 2]

Nothing scares me more then the thought of Cerridwyn and Goldeneagle working on elven strategies together

 

I'm just glad I won't be fighting either of ya

I appreciate the complement, Saint, but I'm not all that scary. Gotta admit, it gave me a good laugh. As far as meeting on the field of battle is concerned, show up for Origins or GenCon next year, why don't you?

 

ABNGI: So I take it that when a model with First Strike attempts to hit a model with Reach, the First Strike effect is negated?

[abngi 2]

ABNGI: So I take it that when a model with First Strike attempts to hit a model with Reach, the First Strike effect is negated?

Yeppers.

[Cardboard Vampire 0]

Hey,

 

I'm a new Elven player and just got my first game in. It wasn't too impressive unfortunately and his crusaders did some real damage to my poor frail elves. I'll get him next time though.

 

Anyway, I was curious how many of you buy magical equipment for your troops?

 

And how useful are spells in an Elven army?

[Feanor 15]

To Cardboard Vampire

 

I give my leaders a couple magic items captains and warlords typically get greater armor and a weapon sarges get armor if their lucky.

 

As for magic we need it. I will often take Lysette with firestorm and a couple of ice shards and if your up against crusaders take lesser magic empowerment to.

If you need to fool him into bunching up for firestorm sacrifice a breaker and run him suicidally against the foe ALL ALONE your opponent will swarm the the heroic grunt and he dies, then BLAM firestorm hahahahaha!

 

I mostly face overlords DV 11 like crusaders. and in case you wonder my record is now something like 15-4-2

 

good luck

[All-Terrain Monkey 59]

Actually magic and ranged attacks work very well together for the Elves. A player is forced to group his units in base to base contact to counter Elven archers and has to spread apart to avoid spells. Obviously, they can't do both.

 

What kind of troop composition did you use Cardboard? Against high defense armies I recommend loading up on the spell power (Lysette with some fireballs and Lesser Magic Empowerment if you're nasty) and taking small troops with around 2:1 Vale Warrior/Vale Archer ratio. Your warriors aren't there to attack; they're there to keep the enemy away from those archers. Advance forward while screening your archers, tie up his melee so his archers have a harder time of things, and unload arrow after arrow into them. I'm playing a 4000 point Elves vs Crusaders game tomorrow, and while I'll be going a bit crazy in composition the basic playstyle remains intact.

 

Saint of Sinners, tactics and strategy are the two most important components of any game like this, but luckily both can be taught by either observation or tactics. Strategy is easy; you never know exactly what your opponent will bring, so build your army to capitalize on your strengths while negating your weaknesses. Build an army, test it out (nothing wrong at all with proxying, I still haven't fielded an all Elven model army (mostly Reven to date)), see what was worth the points and what wasn't, and tweak as needed.

 

Tactics takes a little more practice. One thing is more important than anything else: Never divide your forces. That leads naturally to the second, getting your opponent to divide his. Use an Eagle to distract his army (losing 170 points to distract 500 while the rest of your army decimates the other 500 of his is perfectly ok in my book). Learn how to stymie enemy archers while leaving perfect fields of fire for yours. Maneuver into melee to ensure you get the maximum effect (ganging up upon a few models rather than spreading out to go toe to toe with a superior force (and, when you're playing elves, just about any other melee group will be just that)).

 

And of course, pump whoever's willing to babble for information :).

[Saint of Sinners 2]

Aren't you the person working on the upcoming Warlord Elves strategy guide?  If so, I can't wait to see it.

What's the story on this? Is it the faction book or something entirely different?

I believe they're one and the same

[Cerridwyn1st 2]

I tried GoldenEagle's troop suggestion. WOW that's vicious. For a 1,000 point game, I added Lysette. Unfortunatly she only got off one Firestorm before the opponent's archers popped her, but that one FS was worth it.

 

I slaughtered an opposing force of Reven and barely lost any of my elves. It might not have been such a route if he had taken Sgts. and Captains instead of the warlord and given himself some more numbers, but still...

 

And Saint, that stuff about me NOT being that scarry if I'm comparing strategy with GoldenEagle - I take it back.

 

Two more victories, GoldenEagle, and I'll boot you out of the #2 slot.

[Cardboard Vampire 0]

Thanks for the answers.

 

I had game number 2 and it was a definite victory. He only managed to kill a third of my forces.

 

I'm still not sure about spells though. I tried out magical items and that seems to have helped a bit but my opponent invested about a hundred points in spells and they didn't seem that effective. Still, it may be because he had to keep his caster behind a row of grunts so that he wouldn't get a dozen arrows through his forehead.

 

Also, since I was asked about the composition of my army, I have three troops. The first is led by Selwyn and contains Ardynn and 3 vale warriors. They act as my defensive melee group. When threats get too close to the archers, these guys close in. The second troop contains the archers. Also led by Selwyn (obviously a different one), it also has Caerwynn (definitely one of the most useful elves in the entire list) and 3 archers. The final troop contains Arnise and 3 Death Seekers. This is my main melee punch. They usually remain hidden or in cover and slam into whoever isn't getting decimated by arrows.

 

So far, this seems to be working better. If I'm lucky, I'll have another couple of games by next week to test stuff out. I think in the next game, I'll go heavy on the magic just to see what happens.

 

Just what is a safe number of points to spend on spells?

[Cerridwyn1st 2]

All depends on how you are using the spellcaster and what you use him/her for. If your sole reason for having the caster is to protect your forces from fireballs, 3 Dispells (at 10pts a pop) is all you need. If you are aiming to be more offensive, then you could easily spend 250 points on the caster, spells and other pumps.

 

I blew 250pts on Lysette, spells and Greater Magical Empowerment. Worked very well, especially in the second engagement where she stayed alive throughout and popped off all her spells. A Firestorm and Fireball, plus Iceshards and Bolt really messed up the other guy.

[Saint of Sinners 2]

I'm really starting to rethink my army and go back to the elves...

 

I blame Cerridwyn and Goldeneagle for this

[Cerridwyn1st 2]

I'm really starting to rethink my army and go back to the elves...

 

I blame Cerridwyn and Goldeneagle for this

IMHO, you will do better playing something because you love it than for the cheese factor. Every faction has its intricacies and preferred win strategies; the people who do best are those who are passionate enough about thier chosen faction to ferret them out.

 

True, the win factor of the elves is fairly easy to comprehend - powerful magic and unequaled archery make them formidable. But other factions CAN beat them if properly played.

 

You get me on a table with my son and it's 50/50 who will win. He plays Dwarves. Against him, it all comes down to who gets favorable table position. The game is virtually decided before it even begins.

[Feanor 15]

Rats! in my game group there are two elf players. and we are running a campaign my first battle is against the other elves. We have different strategies though his army is a sarge 9 archers a captain with 3 swordsmen and a sorceress

mine is a captain 3 warriors a sarge with 3 spearmen a sarge with 4 archers another sarge with spearmen and a centaur

 

any advice? thanks all

[DontFearDaReaper 0]

I'm really starting to rethink my army and go back to the elves...

IMHO, you will do better playing something because you love it than for the cheese factor.

Preach on brother. I play Necropolis just because I think they look cool and I've always been drawn to undead type armies in fantasy settings. If they turn out to be a good tournament or campaign force then bonus, but if they stink at tourney and campaign play I'll still use them because I like the figures (which means I will occasionally paint them ) and the RP component of the faction is appealing.

 

Play a faction because you like the faction, you'll be a lot happier in the long run than if you spend all your time trying to min/max your force.

 

Besides as a Necropolis player you can't kill me .. I'm already dead

[Ranzadule 3]

Good read fellow Warlord freaks! Maybe you can help...I cannot decide between Elves and Dwarves as my faction. I love quick and deadly, but I've always wanted to play Derfs and found them impossibly bad in other games. RAGE seems to have competitive dwarf possibilities.

Thanks!

 

 

Ranz

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