returning to 40k after about 15 years off! first DE list, critique requested?

Hello! I haven't played 40k since about 6 months after the first codex chaos came out, but recently it caught my attention again and I was thrilled to discover the dark eldar! I bought the new rules and the de codex the next day and have been trying to put together an army list. I thought 1500 points was a good place to start, so what do you think of the following? I was aiming for an army that can put a lot of firepower towards the enemy while faster attack units whizz about in the melee like the reavers cutting as they fly by and a couple of raiders full of close combaty wytches

I'm a total noob again though to all intents and purposes so would appreciate any feedback! My potential army is below:


Base 1500pts DE Army 1500 Pts - Dark Eldar Army

1 Urien Rakarth (HQ) @ 190 Pts
#Casket of Flensing; #Clone Field
Meld the Flesh
Father of Pain
Close Combat Weapon
Ichor Gauntlet

1 Archon (HQ) @ 165 Pts
#Kabalite Armour; #Plasma Grenades; Combat Drugs; Phantasm Grenade
Launcher; Shadow Field; Webway Portal; Haywire Grenades
Close Combat Weapon (x1)
Splinter Pistol (x1)

0 Court of the Archon (HQ) @ 145 Pts

1 Lhamaean @ [10] Pts
Mistress of Poisons
Splinter Pistol
Poisoned Weapon (2+)

1 Medusae @ [15] Pts
Eyeburst

3 Sslyth @ [105] Pts
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Shardcarbine (x3)

1 Ur-Ghul @ [15] Pts

4 Wyches (Troops) @ 155 Pts
Combat Drugs
Splinter P. & CCW (x4)
Haywire Grenades
Plasma Grenades

1 Hekatrix @ [22] Pts
Splinter Pistol
Close Combat Weapon (x1)
Haywire Grenades
Plasma Grenades

1 Raider @ [85] Pts
Flickerfield; Retrofire Jets; Enhanced Aethersails; Chain-snares
Dark Lance

4 Wyches (Troops) @ 150 Pts
Combat Drugs
Splinter P. & CCW (x4)
Haywire Grenades
Plasma Grenades

1 Hekatrix @ [22] Pts
Splinter Pistol
Close Combat Weapon (x1)
Haywire Grenades
Plasma Grenades

1 Raider @ [80] Pts
Flickerfield; Enhanced Aethersails; Retrofire Jets
Dark Lance

8 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 106 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x7)
Blaster (x1)

1 Sybarite @ [19] Pts
Splinter Rifle

8 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 106 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x7)
Blaster (x1)

1 Sybarite @ [19] Pts
Splinter Rifle

8 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 106 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x7)
Blaster (x1)

1 Sybarite @ [19] Pts
Splinter Rifle

8 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 106 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x7)
Blaster (x1)

1 Sybarite @ [19] Pts
Splinter Rifle

3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 98 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x2)
Heat Lance (x1)

3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 86 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x3)

3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 86 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x3)

Models in Army: 65


Total Army Cost: 1499

Welcome back!!! Let me begin.

HQ: both Urien and an Archon are expensive at only 1.5k, heck, Id say even 2k and your pushing it by putting both in. I would pick one or the other, and use the other points elsewhere.

As too which one, Urien is nice, but not all that point effective. His ability to heal himself is good though, but lack of a power weapon hurts.

Your Archon is just completely kitted out wrong. The point of taking one is to get access to his special wargear, of which you have only taken one (the shadowfield) You really need a better weapon on him if you keep him. My suggestion is the Agoniser, its a good cheap alternative (although I prefer the huskblade, but its expensive and you have to have a certain build with your Archon to make the most out of it.)

Also I dont like the court. I think you can get a better assault unit out of 4 incubi or a squad of bloodbrides, but try them out and see if you like them or not.

Troops: Ok 5 wyches really arent going to do anything but dread hunt. Personally I like the # 7, with a hecatrix with an Agoniser, and a shardnet. This unit ties up anything for several turns, allowing your hammer unit (your court in this case, but I like incubi+archon) to position and come in for the kill.

Also warriors on foot??? put them in a raider, and drop them to either 5 with a blaster, or up them to 10 with a blaster and SC. The sybarite is also not needed.

FA: I dont like both heat lances and Caltrops on the same Reaver unit, and here is why. You basically want to fly over units and use that expensive upgrade to full effect, right??? well then your not shooting tanks with that heat lance, so its wasted points. Well what if you have an oppotunity to kill a tank??? well then thats 30 pts wasted.

I find it best to just field 3 w/ a heat lance (at bigger games 6 w/ ) also at this point value I would only bring two FA

HS: Oh wait... what??? No HS??? this has gotta be fixed

Let me explain. The current way the game is played is a heavy emphisis on mechanized lists. That being said there are the abnomalies like Deathwing and Dragiowing, but normally most armies you will be facing bring upwards of 9 tanks, and some IG and DE bring up to 15. You need to able to deal with these threats. That being said transports give your units mobility and flexability that is otherwise loss when on foot.

Secondly the most important thing to have in your army is troops. Troops is the only thing that can capture objectives, and since the game now is 66% of going to be an objective game, you need them. I think you have enough, but you need more mobility with them (as its easier to capture objectives, like in cap and control where one is in the opponents deployment zone.

GL and hope this helps!!!

I was going to type up something, but it looks like mostly I can just say "+1 to Shadow" and I'm pretty much covered.

A few quick thoughts;

The big wtfomglol moments with your list are the Troops and FA sections. The Troops, to my mind, if you want to run them like that should have lances and used like the sniper squads of old. 10 Warriors and a lance is still pretty decent all things considered, and will serve you well.

The FA slots...well...Reavers ain't what they used to be. I'd seriously advocate dumping at least 2 (if not all) of these squads and using the points elsewhere. They are fragile, and though okay at their job, can't do anything that a more sturdy Troop/Elite/Heavy option couldn't do as well or better for similar costs.

Mind if I recode?

Quote :

HQ

Urien Rakarth 190

Archon - drugs, PGL, S.Field, WWP, haywires 165

Court: 145
1x Lhamaean
1x Medusae
3x Sslyth
1x Ur-Ghul


TROOPS

5 Wyches - haywires, Heka 70
DL Raider - FF, EA, jets, chain-snares 85

5 Wyches - haywires, Heka 70
DL Raider - FF, EA, jets 80

9 Warriors - blaster, Sybarite 106

9 Warriors - blaster, Sybarite 106

9 Warriors - blaster, Sybarite 106

9 Warriors - blaster, Sybarite 106


FA

3 Reavers - HL, caltrops 98

3 Reavers - caltrops 86

3 Reavers - caltrops 86

First thought: lacks anti-tank. You can have all the guy-mincing power in the world, it doesn't mean jack **** if you can't pop their ride.

Second thought: this is not a horde army, don't count on footsloggers to win you games.

ok, i've made some changes, is this any better?


Base 1500pts DE Army 1500 Pts - Dark Eldar Army
HQ

1 Archon (HQ) @ 225 Pts
#Kabalite Armour; #Plasma Grenades; Combat Drugs; Phantasm Grenade
Launcher; Shadow Field; Webway Portal; Haywire Grenades; Soul-trap
Huskblade (x1)
Blaster (x1)
with
6 Incubi (Elites) @ 184 Pts
Klaive

1 Klaivex @ [52] Pts
Onslaught
Klaive


TROOPS & FA

5 Mandrakes (Elites) @ 75 Pts
Baleblast


5 Mandrakes (Elites) @ 75 Pts
Baleblast



3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 86 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x3)



3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 86 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x3)



3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 86 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x3)



10 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 220 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x8)
Splinter Cannon
Blaster (x1)
with
1 Raider @ [105] Pts
Flickerfield; Splinter Racks; Night Shields; Torment Grenade
Launchers; Chain-snares; Shock Prow
Dark Lance



10 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 235 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x8)
Dark Lance
Blaster (x1)
with
1 Raider @ [105] Pts
Flickerfield; Splinter Racks; Night Shields; Torment Grenade
Launchers; Chain-snares; Shock Prow
Dark Lance



10 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 220 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x8)
Splinter Cannon
Blaster (x1)
with
1 Raider @ [105] Pts
Flickerfield; Splinter Racks; Night Shields; Torment Grenade
Launchers; Chain-snares; Shock Prow
Dark Lance

Models in Army: 60


Total Army Cost: 1492

I'm partly thinking I can use the raiders to drop off the kabalite warriors wherever I want them and then use the empty raiders to flit about and draw fire / use to overfly the enemy / ram whatever I want to ram with them - mandrakes charging early should aid that intial race across the board?


Although yes, there's no tank stopping in there. Hmm. If I can get lots of souls with the archon his strength will go up though, and I can use him as a bit of a tank killer? Bit optimistic perhaps.. can the splinter cannon not take out tanks? Sorry for being such a noob, i've had the new rules and codex for a grand total of about 48 hours and have just been reading cover to cover so there's big gaps in my knowledge..

I think I'll re-read shadows post and have another crack at it, might have gone overboard putting stuff on the raiders..

Ok, list 2!!!

HQ: You got the idea now, but I think your trying to do too much stuff with him. You have him as a portal carrier, a shooting Archon (with the blaster upgrade) an IC hunter (with the huskblade/soultrap combo) and an Incubi babysitter (with the grenade launcher). He is just trying to do so much, but he is only one character I would limit him to either these two builds for now

Archon w/ Agoniser, Combat Drugs, Shadowfield, Phantasm Grenade Launcher
Archon w/ Huskblade, Soul-trap, Combat Drugs, Shadowfield, Haywires

Use the first one if you really want to use incubi (as he is great with them) If you arent dead set on the incubi, and like the whole huskblade soultrap thingy, give the second a whirl in a squad of wyches.

Elites: If you have the Archon babysitting these guys, you only need 4 to get the job done. That being said if you want to use them regardless of Archon or not, then really only 5 is needed, and maybe a Klavex (extra atttack, WS, and LD is nice) They are also great canidates to be put in a venom, as again the most you ever need is 5

Mandrakes are meh... They are better at shooting than anything else, and are great for tieing up devs, lootas, and the ilk... The problem is most DE lists dont need that because normally anything left on foot T1 is dead anyway by a torrent of Splinter Cannon fire. I would drop them just to save points, but this doesnt mean dont experiment with them and see if you like them for yourself!

Troops: As for your troops set-up, I have no complaints (those 10 warriors are good for most beginners) My only problem is the expensive raiders (although you caught that already) I have a heart attack every time I buy a 70 pt raider (with just a flickerfield) the thought of putting more on them is ew... to me atleast. Ive seen some good builds though use Shock Prows (I admit I use them on accasion, when I have points left over) but anything other than that and Night Shields I find useless. For your intent I would stick with just Flickerfields and Shock Prows (maybe Splinter Racks... although I never like being that close unless I have too)

FA: Ok, I like Reavers, and I understand your trying to get the most out of your Battleforce box by using them, but Ill point out why you shouldnt have them later, but as your list stands I think you would gain more of them by just using Heat Lances, your list really lacks AT.

Ok, Let me show you why you shouldnt have reavers in this list. So your 3 Reaver squads come to a total of 258 pts, with that you get 6 d6 S4 bladevane hits, and 3 D6 S6 hits right? But you have enough AI with the 3 warriors and incubi, so what you seriously lack is AT. For the same points as your Reavers, you can get 2 Ravagers with Flickerfields, and still have 28pts left over, which could be used as upgrades or bolster another squad up. Im not saying dont use Reavers, I just think your better off with the two Ravagers first before you start looking into FA.

Pretty much you need to balance both Anti-Infantry and Anti-Tank. The problem being is almost everything Dark Eldar bring has the potenial of being AI except for Ravagers, and even then we could give them Dissies to be AI. So what most lists lack is AT, as you need to dedicate things to do it (like Trueborn with blasters, or Ravagers, or Reavers/Scourges) A good thing to do is when you are building a list is to look at each complete unit (including any ICs attached) and ask yourself "what role are you going to do". This will allow you to assess what you need, and what you have excess of. Going through your list, I see alot of "I kill infantry" more than "I kill tanks" (actually I see only 3 I kill tanks, and thats maybe). Yes, I know 40k isnt a perfect world and sometimes your AI guys will be staring down a Landraider, or your super deathstar close combat unit will get charged by a Dreadnaught, but when these things happen, you have to accept them and move on, or use a unit that is built to deal with that threat to go save their sorry butts

Well hope this helps, keep those lists coming!!!

Let me start by welcoming you back to the hobby and this wonderful site. Let me also say that I don't usually critique lists as I really believe that it is a very individualized thing and that many lists online tend to be a little homogenous/boring. And no, Splinter cannons most definitely cannot take out tanks.
It struck me as I read through your lists that you are playing your DE like your old Chaos army of 15 years ago. Your Archon is really being used like a Chaos Lord kitted out to hell and back. Though I've been playing DE off and on since they came out in 99' or so, I sometimes get caught playing them like my Orks/IG/Marines. This is when I get HAMMERED. Some units you can do this with(Grotesques+Urien is pretty close to a unit of Nobs with mild Warboss, etc), most you can't.

If you want to keep the huge HQ monster squad I would drop the two Mandrake units and one of the Reaver squads to get a couple of Ravagers with DL's. I don't like to comment on people's lists for the reasons listed above, but I would hate to see you blow around $100 dollars that you don't need to. You would still have two Reaver squads(these are a TON of fun to zip around the board), wouldn't miss the small Mandrake units(trust me, they look cool, but don't do much for me), and would really appreciate the tank popping power of two Ravagers.

My best advice would be to talk to local DE players and see what they use/like/haven't tried and follow the advice listed above about thinking about the role of each unit. Dark Eldar are not utility All-Stars like Marines that can get away with doing anything on the spot. Most of all-get out and play, proxy if you need to try something new, and remember to have fun with it. It's a fun army when you learn how it works.

Oh yeah-get an evil laugh

Hey guys - lots of responses! Thanks so much! I'm just settling in after moving to a new flat which has a games workshop not 10 minutes walk away! If I hadn't already spent all my money on miniatures, i'd be spending it on miniatures!

I don't actually have the DE battleforce set, I just did some ebay sniping over the last week or so and managed to pick up a bunch of DE stuff. I think a lot of it is the old models, but i'm ok with that, it gives me a way to get an army together quickish and affordably and gives me time and scope to get back into painting again - as well as making my money go further enough to buy paint!

(can't wait to build it up even more with the new kit tho :p)

But I am keen to use the reavers because I snagged 9 of them for about a tenner :p so seeing as I have them.. maybe they can be my fast moving at?

Watch this (former) space (marine) for an updated list soon!

List 1.2 - tweaked!


Base 1500pts DE Army 1500 Pts - Dark Eldar Army by kips v1.2

1 Archon (HQ) @ 165 Pts
#Kabalite Armour; #Plasma Grenades; Combat Drugs; Shadow Field; Soul-trap;
Haywire Grenades
Huskblade (x1)
Blaster (x1)
^
7 Incubi (Elites) @ 154 Pts
Klaive
(close combat unit - 4x str 8 shots plus 14x s4 hits in close combat - is it worth having these guys in reserve and having them deploy right into the thick of things? or maybe they're just a big red herring, a distraction, the enemy will expect me to charge with them right away, but what if I wait a bit while the mandrakes pepper them with shots, then send them in to mop up?)

1 Haemonculus (HQ) @ 75 Pts
Hexrifle; Animus Vitae
Altered Physique
Close Combat Weapon (x1)
Venom Blade (x1)
^
9 Mandrakes (Elites) @ 135 Pts
Baleblast
(pew pew pew!! 18x s4 baleblast shots, feel no pain from the haemy, or if I seperate them and deploy with infiltrate for some t1 carnage and then rush the heamy over to give them FNP after that? unsure but like the concept.


10 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 220 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x8)
Splinter Cannon
Blaster (x1)

1 Raider @ [105] Pts
Flickerfield; Splinter Racks; Night Shields; Torment Grenade
Launchers; Chain-snares; Shock Prow
Dark Lance

10 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 235 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x8)
Dark Lance
Blaster (x1)

1 Raider @ [105] Pts
Flickerfield; Splinter Racks; Night Shields; Torment Grenade
Launchers; Chain-snares; Shock Prow
Dark Lance

10 Kabalite Warriors (Troops) @ 220 Pts
Splinter Rifle (x8)
Splinter Cannon
Blaster (x1)

1 Raider @ [105] Pts
Flickerfield; Splinter Racks; Night Shields; Torment Grenade
Launchers; Chain-snares; Shock Prow
Dark Lance


^I love the idea of 3 fast moving craft that can disgorge a huge amount of troops wherever I want - plan is to deploy cunningly, then swoop them far away to great shooting spots, sending 2 of the raiders on suicide AT missions and keeping one incase I need to transport something somewhere fast.. a DE taxi if you will! surely 30x Kabalite warriors who can get anywhere fast can bring the pain?)

3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 98 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x2)
Heat Lance (x1)

3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 98 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x2)
Heat Lance (x1)

3 Reavers (Fast Attack) @ 98 Pts
Combat Drugs
Bladevanes
Cluster Caltrops (x1)
Close Combat Weapon
Splinter Pistol
Splinter Rifle (x2)
Heat Lance (x1)

^zoom zoom zoom - straight at the enemy tanks (AT units)

Models in Army: 60

Ok so this is a tweak more than a huge redesign, partly because I have or am expecting via ebay all these models. Well.. not the incubi, or the heamies, mandrakes.. but other than that... What do you think guys, is it a bit better rounded? I tried to focus the units a bit more, and get more AT in there. More thoughts / critique very appreciated as I still feel like a total noob! Although I am getting SOME kind of a clue..


Total Army Cost: 1498

A couple quick thoughts;

1. Raiders are held together with paper mache' and hope - and we're all out of hope. These things die easy - I personally think it's a bit foolhardy to invest 105 points into something that a couple of Tactical Marines with bolters and a flamer can shoot out of the sky. In my opinion you have waaay too many upgrades on those suckers, and it's going to hurt you.

2. 7 Incubi + Lord in 1500 is...well...it's a bit like fielding 10 TH/SS Termies with Lysander...you can do it, but what are you going to run across that will need that much killing? What they should assault will be shredded in seconds and leave them open to counter shooting. I would strongly advise trimming to 4-5 Incubi...you'll still probably mulch anything you come across, but there's a reasonable chance you'll stay in combat that one extra round which is important.

3. I really do advise against Mandrakes, I think they are hands down the worst infantry model in the codex, and the second worst thing in the codex overall. They are just not very good at what they're supposed to do - and aren't even that good at anything else.

4. If the RJBs are anti-mech, why waste all those points on Caltrops? I'd drop them like a bad habit and reinvest the points elsewhere.

5. At 1500 I usually field 5-6 Troop options. You certainly don't have to do this, but I do strongly advise taking more than 3. Our Troops are pretty fragile, and 40k 5th edition is very focused on Troops to make an army competitive.

6. You might want to check this out;
http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/Dark_Eldar_Tactica_Part_1
An article I wrote on DE strategy and tactics on DakkaDakka - I think it could help you in the transition from Space Pansies to DE..

Hm, just a thought, if I stripped down on extras, could i afford to split the 10 man squads into 5 man squads with raiders and then config the raiders for at? then i'd have 30/35 kabalite warriors, could deep strike the raiders, disgorge the troops and then scream the raiders off to take out any tanks / heavy stuff. ideally i could pin my foe in a crossfire of death while my assault units move forward to get stuck in. decent tactic? foolish idea?

reworking the list a bit, will scrap the mandrakes - that wiki is incredible!!

Although Raiders do come with an AT gun, they are not supposed to be counted on for taking out tanks. For me it usually takes all 3 ravagers' lances to get 1 good vehicle damage result. So that one shot isn't really going to matter. But still, I would take a DL instead of the Dissie.
Question: how do you want to equip your raiders even more to AT? Get the DL and FF/NS and your done IMO.

Quote :

could deep strike the raiders, disgorge the troops and then scream the raiders off to take out any tanks / heavy stuff.

Don't. Why deepstrike if you can move the same distance with your engines without misshaping with deepstrike and maybe, if you move accordingly, fire all weapons/disembark as well.

Quote :

could I afford to split the 10 man squads into 5 man squads...

If you want to take 5 men, than take a venom. Those are cheaper and come with great AI capability.

Quote :

ideally i could pin my foe in a crossfire of death while my assault units move forward to get stuck in. decent tactic? foolish idea?

Your list contains 1 way overpowered CC unit so far, the rest is terrible or mediocre in CC (in DE terms). Overall the tactic isn't bad, but than you should get some more CC units of your choice (wyches/wracks/harlequins/beasts/grotesques/plenty of choice) in your list.

BlckRven wrote:

For me it usually takes all 3 ravagers' lances to get 1 good vehicle damage result.

Whoa man, that's harsh.

Seriously, though? I like Raiders because in reality, I don't ever have to count on that one DL shot. There always seems to be another Raider nearby who can assist, or some dweeb with a Blaster... AT adds up pretty fast if you don't skimp on it.

At the very least; 3 Raiders = 1 Ravager, except that if the first lance works you're better off.

Raneth wrote:

BlckRven wrote:

For me it usually takes all 3 ravagers' lances to get 1 good vehicle damage result.

Whoa man, that's harsh.

Maybe I made a sentence that could be read in more than one way. I meant that all 3 lances on 1 ravager are required to get 1 good result. Weird enough; good being 1,2, 5+. 3 and 4 are nice, but they often require another barrage of DL's to nullify the threat.

I agree that the raider is a nice AT solution. But you should never take a bunch of raiders and suspect you're okay on AT. I even would like to say that 9 raiders are less effective than 3 ravagers. Apart from the quantity(and maybe quality) of terrain it takes. A ravager is better with it's AV, Aerial assault and the fact that is doesn't need to close in to drop off a unit.

As I said, raiders are nice as AT, but is should only be their secondary objective.

BlckRven wrote:

I even would like to say that 9 raiders are less effective than 3 ravagers. [1]Apart from the quantity(and maybe quality) of terrain it takes. [2]A ravager is better with it's AV, [3]Aerial assault and [4]the fact that is doesn't need to close in to drop off a unit.

I really disagree with this - if points and force org didn't matter - 9 Raiders is so vastly superior to 3 Ravagers that it isn't funny, even if damage was applied to Raiders 3 at a time to equal out that aspect, Raiders would still be better.

1. Hiding behind terrain is a double edged sword (and the reason that people take Flickerfields) if there's no terrain than the Ravager is just as boned. If there's enough terrain for 3 skimmers to hide behind you're on a good table, and probably can swing cover in a variety of ways.

2. I'll agree with this, though the difference of 11 v 10 doesn't come up too often. Generally the Ravager is dying to the same amount of effort that kills a Raider.

3. Functionally the Raider has aerial assault - it can fire all of its weapons after moving 12" This is not a Ravager advantage.

4. Now you're limiting yourself to thinking that the Raider has to be carrying assault Troops. First off, it's ability to be a transport is an advantage, second off - it can carry Warriors with a Blaster or Trueborn just as well as a Venom (better if you use the rotate trick/cheat)

Also, let's break down why the multiple platforms is win;

Ravager fires on...I dunno, let's say a Razorback with TL Las.

It hits twice and manages a stun and a weapon destroyed. Nice.

Now, 3 Raiders fire on a Razorback.
1st Raider misses.
2nd Raider manages a stun.

You can now fire that third lance at another threat. The Raider has an advantage via multiple target generation with their three lances. The Ravager is worthwhile because it's very affordable to get three lances - but the Raider is excellent anti-mech, and in many ways superior.

I think your lists sort of jump around. You mean you haven't played since third edition? A lot has changed since then and, barring a change in the upcoming sixth edition, hybrid foot-vehicle armies tend to not fare well.

The things you seem to be dedicated to having in your list are Reavers, Archons, and something punchy to go with the Archon (the court isn't a bad choice, but not as a one-of-each Court; you really should take a Court with probably 6-7 models). However, you absolutely need to have any hard hitters in vehicles. A WWP is not a good option for a squad costing 300+ points.

You say you like the idea of warriors in Raiders who move in for AT, but to be honest one Blaster in the squad makes them more suicide than AT. If you want them to be AT, I'd go with the basic 10 with DL in a Raider. You can deploy them in the vehicle or out, and either way you'll be able to shoot, but you'll probably want to be firing with them as much early as you can. DE tend to go to an extreme. If you start out winning you can pile on pretty well, if you suffer a set back early, it's going to be a long game.

Considering that, I'd suggest something like this:

Archon-PGL, Shadowfield, Combat Drugs, Agoniser
5 Incubi-Raider

10 Warriors-DL, Raider
10 Warriors-DL, Raider
10 Warriors-DL, Raider
7 Wyches, Haywire Grenades Hekatrix w/Venom Blade, Raider
7 Wyches, Haywire Grenades Hekatrix w/Venom Blade, Raider

6 Reavers-2 Heat Lance

Okay, so without checking my book that puts you at 1314(so, -ish) and leaves you a little under 200 to play with. Not sure what models you have. What's nice is, DE troops are terrific and at lower point values you can get a lot of bang for your buck out of scoring units.

If you have Mandrakes I feel like you could use them as long as you appreciate that they just aren't real great. But start them with a Haemonculus and they have some decent AI ability with some poor man's AT. If you have more bikes, I think another squad would be solid, and leave you with points to do some more stuff. As others have mentioned, taking both Caltrops (which are really expensive) and Heat Lances is not very cost effective as you are not getting the most out of them.

I notice you didn't take any HS options. Personally, I would consider getting at least one of the HS vehicles in there as they add a lot of punch. The above example list has a fair, not overwhelming, amount of AT shots at 1500(11 spread out on 10 units, plus the grenades on the Wyches) and would benefit from a Razorwing Jetfighter, which would add some AT and AI and still leave a few points to buy another Incubi or a couple of Wyches.

Tactics would be pretty straight forward and leave open the option of sitting back and shooting with the Warriors as their empty Raiders advance to block movement and run interference and the combat units wait to launch a counterattack or moving up and using their rifles to fire into a more Horde army.