Grot freakshow 2k

Hey guys, just working on my version of a freakshow with eldar allies. All comments and criticism welcome.

Eldar aspect host
4 fire dragons + exarch (joins wwp haemonculus and raider)
4 warp spiders + exarch
4 warp spiders + exarch

Eldar Allied detachment
Farseer skyrunner, singing spear (joins eldar bikes)
3 Windriders, scatter lasers + Warlock
Vauls wrath support batters, 2 D cannons.

Grotesquerie
Haemonculus, WWP (With fire dragons and raider)
3 Grotesques, raider with enhanced ethersails
3 Grotesques, raider with enhanced ethersails

Dark Eldar CAD
Succubus, Armour of misery, Archite glaive
2 Medusae, Venom - splinter cannons

5 Kebalite warriors, venom - splinter cannons
5 Kebalite warriors, venom - splinter cannons
5 Kebalite warriors, venom - splinter cannons

Raider, nightshield, dark lance (Haemonculus, fire dragons)
6 reavers, 2 cluster caltrops
5 scourge, 4 Haywire blasters.

Everything would start on the board except Medusae, scourge and fire dragons. Grots and reavers boost turn 1 (as safe as possible with a 2+jink if night fighting). I think it is all pretty self explanatory what the roles of everything is... I am thinking of putting the succubus with one of the grot squads putting out a -3 LD bubble for psychic scream and horrify. What do you think of the list? No need to be nice, rip it apart if you think it is crap

How do you plan on capitalizing on the leadership modifier? Once I killed your Farseer it's not a freak show anymore.

I see what he was trying to do. Putting the farseer in the bikes with a warlock gives them conceal for a 2+ cover save, or a 3+ armour save. As good as that sounds, it's not so hot on that particular unit because you have so many points tied up in shooting, which will have to snap fire if you jink. Also, every major tournament rules that you have to roll to hit for psychic shriek, so if you're snap firing, your whole plan is blown.

Solutions:

1. Drop the warlock completely, drop the jetbike from the farseer, and plan on putting the farseer in the unit with the succubus who has the armour of misery. You should give that succubus a WWP, swap the armour of misery for the archangel of pain, buy an extra medusae, and put both the farseer and WWP succy in the venom with them to deep strike.

Quote :

Points Saved:
-50 Warlock
-15 Jetbike
-15 Armour of Misery
+25 Archangel of Pain
+35 WWP
+25 Medusae
TOTAL: -5 points

2. You have a lot of points tied up in making the fire dragons work. Personally, I'd drop all the units in the aspect host and replace them with 3 units of 6 swooping hawks(including exarch). The swooping hawks have S3 AP5 Assault 3 weapons for hordes, large blast grenade packs in the movement phase when they no scatter deep strike, haywire grenades on every single model, and 18" movement in the movement phase. They can charge 30 inches in the first turn, so they don't need deep strike to crush vehicles by turn 1 or 2. Saved points:
       

Quote :

      + 6 Swooping hawks(including exarch)*3=318
      - 5 Warp Spiders(including exarch)*2 = 210
      - 5 Fire Dragons(influding exarch)*1 = 120
      - 1 Empty Fast Attack Raider w/ NS + DL = 75
+ 5 points from running total = +5
                                       TOTAL SAVED: 87 points

3. Only 1 unit of your grots have a leader. They're leadership 3 and not fearless on their first turn without the Haemy. If they're targetted with psychic shriek or something similar, they're toast. Also, if 1 dies, they're running away. Too many points tied up there to allow that. I'd drop the WWP and put the Haemy with the other grots. Since we put the succy in with the dusas, we also need another leader for the first one. Buy another succubus w/archite glaive.

Quote :

Points Saved:
+ Succubus w/Archite Glaive & armour of misery = 110
- Dropped WWP on Haemy = 35
- 87 points from Running Total = 87
TOTAL SAVED: 12 points

4. Drop both aethersails from the grots raiders. They move 12" and flat out another 18" for 30" total first turn, followed by 6" move, 6" disembark, and average of 7" charge. They don't need aethersails. There is only 24 inches of space between deployment zones. Also drop 1 scatter laser. You need the points to pay for the night shields on the grot raiders 2x.
Points saved:

Quote :

+ Night shields on both grot raiders = 30
- Dropped both aethersails = 10
- Dropped a scatter laser = 10
- 12 points from running total = 12
Total Saved: 2 points

5. Split your reaver unit into 2 units of 3 now that you have a FA slot open.


If you follow the above steps, the list will play like this: You flat out both grot raiders across the table at your opponent turn 1 getting everything into the -1 Ld range. Raiders jinking, reavers boost into position, jinking for their 3+ if necessary. Scourges pick a choice target to set up maximum carnage next turn. Vaul's provide cover for the middle of the table. Warriors/venoms hang back dropping cover fire and playing for objectives.

Hopefully, turn 2 your reserves come on and you hit a big 18" leadership bomb, plus psychic shriek, and 3 templates. If you get invis, this is the unit you cast it on. That'd make the unit almost invulnerable to shooting, and if anyone wanted to charge you, they'd take 3d3 template autohits from "wall of death" overwatch.

I'm sure you can figure the rest out from there. If I'd change anything else in this setup, it'd be to get rid of the D-cannons. They're great support for a shooty army, but sort of fall flat in supporting an aggressive army(like one with a grotesque core and deep strike bombs) because their shots can't make it into enemy territory. I guess you could move them out and try to run them first turn to get better coverage.

Thanks for the replies guys.

CptMetal, I get that, but what would you do differently?

Really appreciate the write up and thoughts BetrayTheWorld.
1. I love the idea of upping the medusae squad with the farseer and archangel succy, I am a little reluctant for it though. It seems just too much eggs in one squishy basket. I usually just run 2 medusae in a venom and they usually wipe a squad then get wiped themselves, my gaming group is scared of them and always is a high priority target. By adding in a farseer and a succy, it will make it even more so (the damage output of this little unit would be pretty great though). Yeah there is a chance I might get invis and another chance I will get to cast both invis and psychic scream. I would love to do this unit, but I just can't find a way to protect them... Any advice or alternate ideas on this?

2. I love warp spiders and fire dragons, not really a fan of swooping hawks, you do make good points on them, there is just something I don't like about them, not sure why, especially seeing as though I LOVE scourge...

3. I see your point, I was just thinking inside a raider or in combat they can't be screamed, so most of the time they should be right, I just basically need them to survive that 1st turn. The succy would add a lot to the squad though, hmm. You have given me a lot to think about.

4. Yes you are totally right. I totally forgot to add the night shields, thanks for pointing that out. I'll drop the sails too.

5. I have never gone msu with my reavers, I'll give that a shot. Thanks.

kuni wrote:

Really appreciate the write up and thoughts BetrayTheWorld.  
1.  I love the idea of upping the medusae squad with the farseer and archangel succy, I am a little reluctant for it though.  It seems just too much eggs in one squishy basket.  I usually just run 2 medusae in a venom and they usually wipe a squad then get wiped themselves, my gaming group is scared of them and always is a high priority target.  By adding in a farseer and a succy, it will make it even more so (the damage output of this little unit would be pretty great though).  Yeah there is a chance I might get invis and another chance I will get to cast both invis and psychic scream.  I would love to do this unit, but I just can't find a way to protect them...  Any advice or alternate ideas on this?

First, understand that we are playing a math game. Don't ever let anyone sway your opinion otherwise.

It's Simple: You have a 75% chance every game of getting psychic shriek AND either invisibility or shrouding. You have non-scatter deep strike, and everything you're using to hit the enemy ignores cover. Drop them right into cover and fire out of it. With shrouding, you'll have a 2+ or 3+ cover save, and with invisibility, they will only hit you on 6's. But remember that you're bombing everything in an 18" dome with a leadership bomb. Your best defense is a good offense. Position yourself to hit as many units as possible with your indirect fire weapon(archangel), and focus kill the things that pose the most threat with your direct fire weapons(shriek, singing spear, templates).

On the 25% of games where you don't get invis or shrouding, you still have psychic shriek anyhow, so you just deep strike them in their transport and cast shriek from inside, while also using singing spear and 3 dusa templates from inside the transport OR if your opponent doesn't have flamers/ignores cover, you still drop them in cover and have the dusa's out front followed by the succy, with the farseer in the rear for the 4++. As the unit takes wounds that get past the cover save, take off dusas. If it gets to wounding your succubus, look out sir onto your farseer to use the farseer's 4+ invuln.

Against almost all armies I can possibly think of, that dusa star should knock out more points than itself pretty regularly, then take an obscene ammount of firepower to kill quite often.

Bear in mind also that by the time this squad arrives, there are also 2 grot wagons in their face. So if they want to dump all their firepower into that unit, let them. Then slice and dice.

kuni wrote:

not really a fan of swooping hawks, you do make good points on them, there is just something I don't like about them, not sure why

I don't even know what to say to that. You're functioning on a different wavelength than me, I guess.

Discussion on strategy:
Statement: Stats, stats, stats, stats, there it is, that's what the unit does, and it's undeniably more efficient than X, Y, and Z.
Response: Meh, I just like Y and Z better, dunno why.

You're the second person to say something like that to me in less than 24 hours. People are wierd. Maybe I need to update my brain's empathy software.

Just to give you a further sales pitch on the hawks, you can start them on the table turn 1, use their ability to jump off the table on the first turn, which put's them into ongoing reserves. Ongoing reserves automatically arrive on the next turn without a roll. So, it's a little trick to guarantee their deep strike bombs on turn 2 without an autarch or anything. They're also the only unit in the game that can reliably charge on the first turn without a formation special rule or anything. They move 18 inches in the movement phase and can still charge. That's incredible.

Good luck with your games!

Betraytheworld.

Thanks again for the write up. Will definitely use the bigger medusa/far seer/succy bomb.

In regards to the Hawks, it's a fluff and aesthetics thing, not a potential thing. Plus the fact I have 20 scourge and 0 Hawks...

Really glad I posted the list, your feed back is better then I had hoped for. Thanks again

No problem! Good luck and let us know how it goes!