Use of Court of the Archon

How many here actually use this option? (I love the figs). If used, what successes and failures have you had with "the court"? How did you use it? With the Archon, or as a separate unit? Feed this newbee's brain

I've never used it due to the fact that you have to take at least one of everything. If I could take an all-Sslyth Court then I'd be all over it like a rash!

I have run 3 sslyth, 1 of each of the others (majority T5) with some success. You can also go 2 medusae, 1 of each other for a mini flame squad.

Problem is what they do (AI) is done better and cheaper elsewhere in the list

I was considering purchasing 3 Sslyth, 2 Ur-Ghul, 2 Medusae, 1 Lhamian to go with an Archon on a raider for the T5 factor. Other than Grots, its the only way to get unit T5 AND have 2 flame templates. What else does that?

Sathonyx wrote:

I was considering purchasing 3 Sslyth, 2 Ur-Ghul, 2 Medusae, 1 Lhamian to go with an Archon on a raider for the T5 factor. Other than Grots, its the only way to get unit T5 AND have 2 flame templates. What else does that?

Problem with that is that you don't get T5 as the unit has majority T3. Only 3 out of the 9 models in that squad are T5 so they in fact lose T5 are treated as T3.

Hence the build I posted earlier

Massaen wrote:

Hence the build I posted earlier

I'm just not sure what that unit actually does? How do you use it?

I could see some use for The Court if I was playing in a game that didn't allow taking extra Force Orgs and also was a game large enough that I had maxed out all of my other Force Org slots and also wasn't Apoc where I could ignore Force Org.

I've never played that game yet - everything the Court does can be done better and cheaper by a different unit in the Codex.

They are terrible.
Though...still probably better than Mandrakes.

I have to agree with Thor but I with the disclaimer that I've never actually playtested them. I've never playtested mandrakes either or bloodbrides but some things are almost self-evident.

I think it's more of a fluff thing than anything competitive and really just reflects a desire, by GW, to make a "Dark" version of an Eldar unit (Court of the Young King). As much as I like the models for the Court, I can't justify their inclusion just the same conclusion I had with a number of other DE.

I am very interested in hearing any combination that seems to provide a compelling argument in favour of the Court.

Side question: I don't have the codex at hand but can the Court be a seperate unit? I was under the impression that if you buy a Court, it's a retinue of the Archon and they cannot voluntarily separate, like a Hekatrix.

If you can have them separate, than I'd almost want to take them as suicide double flame squad (on a Raider with sails) to get at lootas/havocs etc.

huymix wrote:

Side question: I don't have the codex at hand but can the Court be a seperate unit? I was under the impression that if you buy a Court, it's a retinue of the Archon and they cannot voluntarily separate, like a Hekatrix.

They are indeed a separate unit.

I seem to recall reading somewhere a Phil Kelly comment that he was unhappy with the Court - and his basic niggle was he wanted them as 0-x unit option, not a 1-x meaning you could take a Court with, for instance, no Lhamaeans at all. That would go a long way towards making the Court more playable.

I'll admit, there is a bit of a laundry list even then, but that alone would at least make them pretty functional at least for friendly play.
Woosh, that might be a fun project to toy with sometime 're-work the Court so it's a functional unit'

I am actually buying them now :p
Not going to play them much or anything, but just for the fun of it.

Enjoy! I can't afford to pay that sort of money for models I won't use but hope you can find a use for them.

I've only considered them for Forgeworld's Tantalus. The Court makes it a dedicated transport so it doesn't use up a Heavy slot.

I've been tinkering in my head with a FUN list to take 2 Archons with 2 bare minimum Courts each. Then 2 maximum squads of Incubi each with a Venom. Turn 1 stick the Courts in the Venoms and the Archons join the Incubi who then all hop into the 2 Tantalusses (Tantaloi?). It just seems a lot of fun to me to shove 2 big ships full of Incubi in my oponnents face while still being able to field 3 Ravagers/Flyers/Reapers whatever...

Can't do that I am afraid... The unit must be able to fit in the transport you buy for it... So your incubi units would need raiders

Where do you get that a unit has to be able to fit in it's transport? AFAIK they just have to be deployed at the same time. As a matter of fact the BRB says that "the only limitation on Dedicated Transports is that when they are deployed, they can only carry the unit it was selectedwith".

It's written in the codex right at the beginning of the dedicated transport section (pg91).

Quote :

Note that units may not select a dedicated transport if the number of models in the unit is higher then the transport capacity of the vehicle.

Oops, forgot that rule whilst fantasizing about this plan. Foiled once again.

Nah... Then it' ll have to be Raiders, alas. Slight change of plans.

... Learn something new every day.

I totally misunderstood the unit toughness thing. I thought you looked at each TYPE of model for it's toughness. I'm saying there would be 1 Lahmian (a separate type model), 2 medusae (different type models), 2 Ur-Ghuls (again different type models, the 3 Sslyths. 4 different "types" of models, but the Sslyth are still the majority with 3, compared to 1-2-2 of the others. Thats how I'd read the rule. I didn't realize you totalled up models from each level of toughness, ie: how many T5, how many T3. Hope you guys understand how I, as a NEWBEE, was seeing the rule.

No worries! Ironically, the best hq to add to my 3 sslyth build is a T4 one! Adding a T3 hq reduces the squad back!

I actually had three of the Ssssslythssss in my basket, and then I read the others are all 1-x

Its a bit of a shame, I was looking at grotesques, but then decided he was never going to get hit anyway, with initiative insanity and AP2 Kapow your dead

I thought the HQ that had to go with the court had to be an Archon (T3)...as its called "Court of the Archon". Are you suggesting using Urien?

Sathonyx wrote:

I thought the HQ that had to go with the court had to be an Archon (T3)...as its called "Court of the Archon". Are you suggesting using Urien?

Archon only. Vect and Malys included.

You can take a court for every Archon, but I don't think there's any rule that says that only an Archon can join the Court. It's just a unit that can be joined by any IC, like any other.

Thats right, you can take one of each T3 models and 3 Sslyth with T5. The majority Toughness is 5 if the unit is alone or joined by a Haemonculus. The Archon doesn't have to join the unit. You just need him to buy the unit.