Warhammer/Tactics/8th Edition/Dark Elves

Why Play Dark Elves

Do you want your Elves to take the next logical step in their belief of 'we're better than everyone' over to 'so we should be allowed to kill them?' Do you want to troll your enemy mercilessly and drink their tears? Then Dark Elves are for you.

In the long long ago, in the before time, in 6th edition, Dark Elves were a finicky and difficult army. Limited unit choices, overpriced and underpowered units and difficult to use tactics made them a favorite of smart and tactical players. Then came the 7th edition update and they rocketed up to being the 2nd best army in the game (behind Daemons) and while the 8th edition book has balanced things a bit, they remain a powerhouse army.

Dark Elves are not for people who expect all their units to have the staying power of Lizardmen or Dwarves, or the hitting power of Chaos Warriors or Ogres, or even the overall power of Daemons. Yes, the Dark Elves have units that hit like a ton of bricks (Hydra most notably) but they are the minority. Dark Elves excel at having cheap infantry with good stats and solid staying power. You will have to combine units, weaken enemy elites, whittle away at them and receive a lot of charges as Dark Elves. But don't mistake them for weak: Your enemy will do that and then they will LOSE.

Also? We're the next Fantasy Army to be updated. We've got a couple of cool looking new units (Sisters of Slaughter, Kharibdyss aka the Sea Monster and the Bloodwrack Shrine) and some old units like the Hydra, Warriors, Cauldron of Blood and Witch Elves are getting AWESOME (but very expensive) new models. Army-wide ASF confirmed. The author is Matt Ward. Stay tuned for further updates.

Unit Analysis

Lords & Heroes

Named Characters

• Malekith, the Witch King: It's good to be the King. Malekith cost's 510 points vanilla (JUST keeping him out of games under 2500, what a tease) but you get your moneys worth for it. He's a Highborn with higher WS, S and T. He's also a level 4 Wizard (who has to use Dark Elves' special lore), magic armor that gives a 2+ ward against mundane attacks and makes him immune to multiple wounds and being killed outright, a magic weapon that lets him break enemy magic items (allowing him to get rid of those pesky magic weapons that can harm him), a shield that gives him Magic Resistance (2) and causes magic spells aimed at him that are dispelled to rebound for an S6 hit on the wizard per dice, a crown that gives him an extra power and dispel dice per phase and his inspiring Presence is 18' instead of 12' (24' on his Black Dragon). And he still has hatred and comes with Immune to Psychology. Exhale. He costs a bucketload but can easily turn entire games around. His mount options include Cold One (mediocre), a Cold One Chariot with a 2+ save (quite good for smaller points games) and a Black Dragon (requires a game of 4000 points or more and you don't get ANY other Lords, but can wreck entire units on it's own). Malekith is an expensive powerhouse. The combination of killer stats, great special rules and magic items and being a powerful caster in his own right make him more than worth his rather expensive entry cost in a casual game. Still lives with his mom.

• Morathi, the Hag Sorceress: Morathi is a little schitzo about her role. Her abilities and stat increases seem to indicate that she's intended for combat, which is the exact opposite place from where you want her. She's also more expensive than a regular level 4 Sorceress and she doesn't get enough for it. If you're in a big points game and you want to have more than one Level 4 with the Dark Elf lore, then her ability to take all the spells in Dark Magic might be worth it, but you should really be taking Fire or Death in larger points games. Just take a regular Level 4 Supreme Sorceress. She also has the honor of being one of only two models (the Bloodwrack Medusa is the second) who actually shows her tits. Actual, unobscured (aside from the boob-holders that look like they're straight from a Korean MMO) honest-to-god breasts, with nipple and all. If someone actually uses Morathi, there is a roughly 95% chance they use her for this very reason. In all fairness, Dark Magic is a good damage lore, and Morathi has the mobility to use it. Also, getting 2 enchanted and/or arcane items with unlimited costs is great

• Crone Hellebron: Hellebron is a fundamentally ideal combat lord. Okay, she costs 110 points more than fully kitted out Dreadlord and comes with no protection. But she has I9, comes with 6+D3 S10 attacks (essentially guaranteed to wipe out an entire rank), any hit against her rolling a one cause an S4 hit on her attacker, forces the enemy to take an LD test or lose 1 WS, comes with Witchbrew (perfect for a unit of Witch Elves) and makes Witch Elves Core. Oh and she and any unit she's with gets +4 to dispel rolls for any spells cast at them. Yeah. She can also take a Manticore but that's not something you want her to do. Put her in a unit of Witch Elves and send them charging into the enemy.

• Malus Darkblade: You've read his books, now put him on the tabletop. He costs nearly 300 points and has a couple nifty abilities, but overall he's too expensive for his stuff. Using Tz'arkan makes him more powerful, but makes him attack his own unit on hit rolls of one; remember, with ASF and Eternal Hatred he can re-roll failed hit rolls, so this mitigates the damage somewhat. Spite is still the best cavalry mount in Warhammer Fantasy. Better than before but his worth is questionable.

• Shadowblade: Ehh. Almost double what a properly kitted out Assassin would cost. Took a hit since he can no longer hide among the enemy. Even if you get him to reveal himself when he needs to, where he needs to, if he gets killed he could just as easily damage your own unit, which keeps him from being set up like a regular Assassin. Take a regular Assassin, more bang for your buck. Also, the new model, while posed really cool, has definitely too much armor on him for an assassin.

• Lokhir Fellheart: An effective enough combat hero, if a bit on the pricey side. One of his abilities is something anyone can do now and he can get an absurd number of attacks, but the extra hundred points for no stat upgrades means he's kinda limited. A master is probably better. Will actually do incredibly with a big corsair unit and shadow magic buffs. Sadly, he can no longer destroy any Skaven army with 10+ ranks, since his swords don't do that anymore. He can make a unit he joins Unbreakable but only if he's in a challenge, which is what he's suited for with ASF, Hatred High Elves and re-rolling failed wound on the offense, with a 2+ armour save, regeneration and terror on the defence.

Generic Characters

Note: While named characters are judged against their generic counterparts, generic characters are examined based on their role in your army.

NOTE: No Master or Highborn's Armor Save should EVER be below 4+. It costs less than 15 points to give them Heavy Armor and Sea Dragon Cloak which instantly gives them a leg up on 99 percent of most enemy heroes and lords.

• Dreadlord: Your workaday combat lord. He's cheap and effective and can be highly nasty when given the right equipment (with the change to Dark Elf magic items, new combos need to be suggested). There are many equipment options that will be covered in the equipment section. Overall, he's cheap with some good stats (WS7 and I8 is nothing to sneer at) and he can be quite effective in the right circumstances. Just don't put him in fights he can't win.

• Supreme Sorceress: Supreme Sorceresses (and Sorceresses for that matter) excel at one thing: Blasting the almighty crap out of everything. You can fling absurd amounts of dice around if you're unafraid of miscasts and have access to some impressively destructive Lores. The Dark Elves signature Lore consists of almost nothing but ways to blast the shit out of people. Aside from that, They can now use all eight Battle Lores (toughness 6 Witch Elves? Fuck Yeah!). To keep in the spirit of the fluff, Death is good for some targeted hero killing and Shadow can home unit Synergy, if you're willing to throw a lot of dice at it. Bringing a Level 4 Supreme Sorceress will almost always pay off. Life is good for those Toughness 6 Witch Elves, but this doesn't feel like Dark Elves (well this codex is Matt Ward's work...)

• Sorceress: Sorceresses are cheap and effective. Level 1s can bring a small effective spell to the table (Notable Dark Magic's signature spell is one that shooting heavy armies HATE!) and bringing a level 2 could provide valuable support when things go tits up for your Supreme Sorceress, especially if you're willing to for alternate Lores (Fire works well for basic Sorceresses). Not as powerful as a Supreme but well worth taking. Remember, they can now use all eight Battle lores.

• Master: Masters are among the best cost for ability heroes in the game. He has no special abilities beyond Hatred, but his WS and I make him powerful for a hero and did we mention he's only 80 points and can ride a fucking MANTICORE? Yeah, this guy can hit 'em where it hurts for cheap. Also the better option for a BSB.

• Death Hag: Death Hags cost 10 points more than a master for 2 hand weapons, Frenzy, Poisoned Attacks aaaand...the loss of any kind of saves beyond a 5++ for 30 points. Not batting 1000 here. And the gifts of Khaine do not compare well to the Magic Items.
  • Cauldron of Blood: 110 points for a model that can wreck anyone's day within 24 inches and makes all Khainite models stubborn within 12. Perfect for a defensive army. Some people like the option to make your Cauldron a BSB, but putting 225 points+ in a unit that can (at most) move 5 inches a turn, with only 4 wounds a 4+ ward save around is a good way to end up handing your opponents those points (a dedicated close combat unit, or just a big regular unit will have gone in one round). Can no longer be the BSB

• Assassin: Assassins are not heroes but there's no better place to put them, so deal with it. Assassins, when kitted out right, can end the life of any Hero and most Lords. Its frankly ABSURD WS and I mean that it can put the whammy on anyone dumb enough to get into close combat with it. And here's the kicker: because of the Hidden rule, people don't know if they're getting into combat with it. Very good in either your rank units (to help them hold up when a powerful unit tries to use them) or in your flank units (to up your kill count when you charge). We'll talk about setups later during the magic item discussion, just remember that Assassins often end up on suicide detail after a round of combat or two. Oh and don't forget to write down what unit it's in, or people will accuse you of cheating.

• Black Ark Fleetmaster: Unknown at this time if it is a Lord, Hero, or an upgrade to a Black Corsair unit, but its worth mentioning. He also has a missing leg, and since he is a pirate elf in Warhammer, he's got a SWORD LEG instead of a peg leg!

• • Mount Options:
    • Dark Steed: The cheapest option, but not really worth it. M9 will put him out away from the rest of the army, except for Dark Riders, but why would you want a character to join them? Because you're awesome and gave him a Ring of Hotek and a posse of 14 other Dark Riders.
    • Cold One: The traditional mount of a Highborn/Master and with good reason. M7 is quite reasonable, stupidity is unlikely to cause problems at LD9 and S4 and +2 to armor saves are always nice. If you want a mounted hero without shelling out for a big expensive mount, this is where to go.
    • Dark Pegasus: Pegasi used to be in kind of a weird position, but since the FAQ hit, they've got significantly better, since they become one model and inherit the Pegasus' toughness. You NEED to make sure your rider has a good armor save and probably a ward too, or it'll get to shot to death (so don't give it to Sorceresses).
    • Manticore: Don't have the points for a Black Dragon, but want something big and scary? Then come on down to Beastmaster's Manticore Emporium. The in between option and a damned good one at that. If you want people to cry cheese, try mounting your Master on one of these.
    • Black Dragon: A middle tier Dragon (better than Sun Dragons and Manticores but not as good as Star Dragons and Greater Daemons) who's effectiveness is often linked to how good the rider is. A powerful mount, perhaps a tiny bit overpriced, but worthwhile. We will cover what items to take and not take later, but a remember that your Dragon is huge and scary, so it will be getting shot at by everyone who doesn't want to see it crashing into their lines. Keep it out of sight of cannons.

Core Units

• Dark Elf Dreadspears/Bleakswords: The mainstay core unit of any Dark Elf army. Lucky for you, they kick ass. A solid statline (high M, WS, BS, I and LD, average everything else) for 7 points (it's always 7 points, you ALWAYS give them shields, doubles their chances of surviving an S3 hit). Cheap command, access to a cheap magic banner. Take them in large units, these are the units you use for receiving charges, they'll need the extra ranks to absorb the hits.

• Dark Elf Repeater Crossbowmen, now called Darkshards...Darkshards. *sigh* Is this really the best name GW can come up with?: The other mainstay core unit, and again they kick ass. Between good range, armor piercing and multiple shots, these guys shred light to medium armored units like they're not even there. Have them concentrate fire with Bolt Throwers and Shades (if you have them) to damage your enemies important units. Again, you always give them shields, as they will be absorbing a lot of S3 and S4 return fire.

• Black Ark Corsairs: The updated army book kinda left Corsairs without a home. They cost 3 points more than a Warrior with Shield for no stat upgrades. Sea Dragon Cloaks and 2 hand weapons make a little more resistant to shooting and a little better on the charge, but rank-and-flank tactics means that your core units are going to be absorbing charges rather than charging. This also applies for the otherwise nifty Slaver special rule. Small units might work okay as flanking units, but Witch Elves do the same job better for the same points. They're not bad, by any means, but there are better options available to you.

• Witch Elves: Witch Elves are the first in the series of nasty flanking units, AND NOW THEY'RE CORE UNITS, KICKASS! The benefit is you can stock up on these lethal ladies and still have points free to allocate to Special units. They have an absurdly high volume of attacks (20 poisoned attacks for 2 ranks), high Initiative and cheap. Banner of Murder is tailor made for these guys and you can't go wrong with Witchbrew. Be careful with them though, they're about as hard to shoot to death as Goblins (more resistant to Panic though, thanks to Frenzy) and are easily led out of position. Use them by all means, but be careful. Also, there's the fact that they are half-nude women sooo... yeah, I guess at $60 for a ten pack, sex must really sell.

• Dark Riders: Fast Cavalry got heavily nerfed under 8th Edition and therefore the otherwise useful Dark Riders don't work as well as they might. They're still good war machine hunters and great for filling out your Core Points (which the otherwise more useful Harpies don't do), but as with Corsairs, there are better choices.

• Dark Elf Chariot: It has horses, NOT Cold Ones!

• Harpies: Harpies are ideal War Machine/Lone Wizard hunters. Cheap? Check. High number of Attacks? Check. High Initiative? Check. Flying? Check. Sadly, they no longer have the rule that they don't panic friendly Dark Elf units. If there's even the slightest chance of you facing an army with some war machines, take these guys. And even if you're not, they're great at drawing units out of position (Frenzied units HATE these guys), disrupting enemy lines and even do an okay job at flanking and assisting in a big melee in a pinch (don't rely on them for this, there's a chance they could take their wounds in combat back). A good choice under any circumstances.

Special Units

• Shades: Lots of players have mixed opinion about Shades. While they might seem expensive they are really mobile with decent stats and scout rules (they can even march and shoot). In low point games they will pretty much win your battles for you. Shades should be used as machine and lone wizard hunters. They can also be used to harass enemy flanks, but sending them into combat is a dicey proposition, since the enemy can split their attacks, but it can help turn important combats around. 5 man units will generally fail, but 10 man units can do wonders against the right opponents.

• Executioners: Chaos Warriors getting you down? Bretonnians resisting all your attempts to move them? Need someone with high Strength to knock out a monster? Then take Executioners. High Strength and Killing Blow make these guys a powerful flanking unit, just don't try to use them as a rank unit and if you want to take BSB (for Banner of Har Garneth for example?), remember it has to be a Death Hag. Be careful where you put them though, at T3, with a 5+ save, they can be very easy to shoot to death.
  • Tullaris of Har Ganeth: One unit of Executioners can take him as a Champion. He costs 15 points more than a Master and has weaker stats. His weapon is nifty, if a little redundant and his abilities are okay, but the problem is his main ability only works when he kills someone in a challenge and with only 1 wound, a 5+ armor save and ASL, most heroes (and a solid percentage of unit champions) will probably be able to knock him out before he strikes. Skip him.

• Cold One Knights: A good enough flanking unit when the chips are down and can even charge smaller units head on in a pinch. Cheap Heavy Cavalry is always welcome. It helps that their models are GORGEOUS (they ride fucking DINOSAURS) and they have an exceptionally brutal statline, with LD9 more than making up for Stupidity. Be careful though, Heavy Cavalry took the hard end of the Nerfstick in 8th edition, so don't send them straight into a ranking enemy unit.

• Cold One Chariots: Quite good as far as Chariots go. It's highly resistant to damage and while, once in a while Stupidity will prevent you from making that charge you need to, it's low cost and high LD keep that from happening too often. Keep it someplace it can't be charged and use it to flank in a tight moment. Not precisely the Black Coach as far as Chariots go, but can be extremely useful.

• Black Guard: The only Rank choice that isn't a core choice. They're easy to damage unfortunately and their unit sizes are limited, but they hit hard (15 always rerollable S4 attacks for 2 ranks) and they. Do. Not. Break. For a 15 point magic banner from the main rulebook they can be LD10 Stubborn and there's nothing funnier than giving a Tower Master the Ruby Ring of Ruin. Highly recommended. Take a flaming banner on them and they WILL take off an abomination or a hydra on the charge.
  • Kouran of the Black Guard: Like Tularis, one unit can take him as a Champion. Unlike Tularis, he's actually worth it. 5 points cheaper than a Master with all the Black Guard trimmings, 3 S6 attacks and he's harder to hit than Tularis. Oh and did we mention that he makes his unit of Black Guard UNBREAKABLE? Definitely something you're going to want to help your Black Guard hold out.

• Reaper Bolt Thrower: Often gets ignored in favor of the more flashy and powerful other rare choice, but a solid choice in it's own right. As will all Bolt Throwers it's good at taking out Heavy Cavalry and low wound monsters. Unlike all other Bolt Throwers (except for High Elves, who have the same exact unit) it can also be pretty good at taking out infantry. Stick it next to your Repeater Crossbowmen and help them shred units one at a time.

• War Hydra: Any bitch-fest about Dark Elves will bring up these guys, usually 2 or 3 times. It's easily the best unit in the army and high in the running for the best cost-for-ability units in the goddamn GAME. 175 points. 7 attacks. 5 wounds. S and T 5. 7 attacks. Hatred. Thunderstomp. A breath weapon with S equal to it's remaining wounds. Did we mention 7 attacks? Also 2 S3 armor piercing guys with 3 attacks each, who literally CANNOT die until the Hydra's bought it. Oh and just so you're absolutely sure: The Hydra ITSELF has Hatred, so it too gets the Re-rolls. This thing EATS. UNITS. Your ultimate flanking unit and you can take 2 in a 1500 point game if you want to drink your opponent's tears. Any unit charged by this should roll for anal circumference.

Rare Units

• Warlocks: Think a Dark Elf version of the Pink Horrors but on horses

• Sisters of Slaughter: Ever wanted your Witch Elves look more like Daemonettes of Slaanesh? Well, here the option for you. They're pretty much Dark Eldar Wyches transplanted into Warhammer Fantasy, without the fancy weapons or combat drugs. More easily shot to death than Witch Elves (they lack Frenzy and the ability to be boosted by a Cauldron of Blood), though they get a 6+ armour save, yippee? Alright for tarpitting elite units in combat, but not so good on the offensive, their Trial of Blades rule has potential but lacks the punch against heavily armoured units. Their worth is iffy compared to other rare choices.

• Kharibdyss, is that how you pronounce it?: The Dark Elves get a sea monster. Strangely enough, it doesn't have the Aquatic or Strider (water) rule. It's got high strength and if its attacks hit it does an additional D6 S7 hits. This, plus I4 and poisoned attacks, makes it a better monster killer than the Hydra, and at 160 points its a bargain as well. Worth taking if your opponent has lots of monsters. Note it only has a 4+ Scaly Skin and T5 with 5 wounds protecting it, so not as good on the defensive.
• Bloodwrack Medusa: A monstrous creature

• • Bloodwrack Shrine: Chariot that amplifies the Bloodwrack Medusa's power.

Building Your Army

Army Composition

Dark Elf Warriors and Crossbowmen are the mainstay of your army. Treat them like it.

Black Guard and Warriors make great supporting Ranked units. Witch Elves and Executioners are great flanking infantry. Cold One Chariots and Cavalry are good too and are generally cheaper, but they don't generate as much static CR.

War Hydras are brutal, under any circumstances but are best charging on the flanks. Harpies make great a disruption and drawing unit, as well as good war machine hunters. Crossbowmen and Bolt Throwers are great for softening up important enemy units.

Shades, Corsairs and Dark Riders are limited in usefulness and there are generally units that do the jobs they do better, but are still viable choices, especially in casual (just don't bring them to a tournament).

Build accordingly.

Magic Items

• Gifts of Khaine:

• • Rending Stars: You can't reveal an Assassin in response to a charge which means you can't stand and shoot with them when the unit they're hiding in is charged and are thus, not useful. On the other hand, running an assassin with manbane and rending stars in a 10 man shade unit is BRUTAL

• • Dance of Doom: 5+ ward for 30 points? Yes please. Good for both Assassins and Death Hags.

• • Touch of Death: Very good for a defensive Assassin or an anti-hero suicide Assassin. Overall a good choice.

• • Rune of Khaine: Useful under any circumstances. One of the best choices.

• • Witchbrew: Again, one of the best choices. You should always give this a Hag in a Witch Elf unit of any size.

• • Hand of Khaine: Eh. Neither Death Hags not Assassins should ever be taking defensive abilities. Skip it.

• • Cry of War: Eh. With Assassin, -1 WS won't matter, and it's hardly more worth it for a Death Hag. If you've got 10 points and absolutely NUTHIN else to spend it on, go for it. Otherwise, skip it.

• • Manbane: Fun for a suicide Assassin who has to take out a high Toughness and high armor save opponent, but not the best 25 point option.

• • Black Lotus: Meh. Only rolls of 1? Skip it.

• • Dark Venom: Could be good but it's really not worth cutting into your allowance. Skip it.

• • Venom Sword: U Mad Bro? Anyone with a big scary monster or a tough hero is gonna HATE this. You need to dedicate an Assassin to it, but if you're fighting against Ogres or designing him to go after Lords, this is definitely a funny choice.

• • Cloak of Twilight: Very good for a Suicide Assassin. If you really wanna troll, use it to fling a nearby in-trouble wizard out of trouble.

• Magic Weapons:

• • Executioner's Axe: Big and expensive, but can be worth it against monster/monstrous infantry/monstrous cavalry heavy armies. For trolling options, put the bearer in a unit with Banner of Har Garneth.

• • Sword of Ruin: Generic 50 point armor save ignoring sword, generically mediocre, better options available.

• • Web of Shadows: Unhelpful. If it hit a unit, then we could work with it, but then it'd just be a breath weapon. Skip it.

• • Chillblade: Another trolling option. High Armor, low Toughness models (Bretonnia) will HATE this. Can be a generally useful item, especially since it ignores armor saves and multi-wound models can't strike. Not great, but worthwhile.

• • Heartseeker: A good choice if ever there was one. Cheap and effective, which is a good term for Dark Elves overall.

• • Hydra Blade: Not great in all situations, but good under a lot of circumstances, especially if you can combine with something else to give the bearer strength upgrades.

• • Caledor's Bane: For Dragon hunters. If you're making a tailor list for anti-Lizardmen, this is your best friend. Still okay if you're not facing either of the above.

• • Dagger of Hotek: Except against their High Elven cousins, DE don't usually need ASF under the current rules set. Skip it.

• • Lifetaker: Good for a shooting based hero. Can also be funny on a back-of-the-army Sorceress. An overall good choice

• • Crimson Death: Note that you can use this while mounted, making it good for, you guessed it, trolling. In all honesty, Whip of Agony is probably better, unless you already have access to a 2+ save and don't need the shield.

• • Deathpiercer: Need a cheap weapon for a mounted hero, and someone's already got Caledor's Bane? Take this. It's okay.

• • Whip of Agony: A personal favorite. Good for filling out the last 25 points of a kitted out Lord, or just giving a hero a better weapon. An excellent choice.

• • Soulrender: Why is a Great Weapon paying 10 points for AP? Skip it.

• Magic Armor:

• • Armor of Living Death: You know that Elven weakness of T3? Well this armor gives you +1 T and +1 W. Oh and there's a 1 in 6 chance you might have stupidity. But on a lord with LD10, who gives a potato?

• • Armor of Eternal Servitude: Regen and Heavy Armor for 15 points less than most armies pay for Regen alone. Well worth it.

• • Cloak of Hag Graef: Might have been worth it for a lone hero, but your heroes shouldn't be running touchdowns alone. Also doesn't work on your mount. Skip it. Unless you're on a pegasus and someone else has got the pendent. Then it's awesome.

• • Armor of Darkness: 1+ armor for 25 points. Perfect for heroes.

• • Shield of Ghrond: Good for a character hunter or if your character already has a 1+ save from other stuff.

• • Blood Armor: There are too many cheap ways to get low armor saves in the current army books. Skip it.

• Talismans:

• • Black Amulet: A really funny item under a lot of circumstances. Maybe a tiny bit on the expensive side, but great for a Lord you expect to be on the receiving end of a lot of attacks (Dragon Mounted for example).

• • Ring of Darkness: Again, would be a lot better if essentially all Dark Elf characters are designed to be hiding inside units. Not really worth it.

• • Pendant of Khaelith: Often nicknamed the Talisman of Cheating. You want to watch a Bloodthirster or Vampire sit there unable to wound you once in close combat? This is the item for you. Gives you essentially a 2+ ward save against anything S5 or above. And it's cheap. An excellent item.

• • Seal of Ghrond: The day I'm unwilling to pay 30 points for an extra dispel dice... a great item.

• • Pearl of Infinite Blackness: Would be better for an army with lower LD. Combined with the damage done to Fear and Terror in 8th, it's probably not worth it.

• • Ring of Hotek: Could be funny if you could give it to an Assassin, but you can't. Skip it.

• • Null Talisman: If you have the points to spare, this might be a good choice for Black Guard or Cold One Knight champion.

• Enchanted Items:

• • Deathmask: 50 points to cause Terror. No.

• • Hydra's Teeth: People look at these and get idea of sniping characters in of units with them.
  • Crystal of Midnight: Extra lulzy, especially since under the current rules, each army can only have each spell once (with some exceptions). Not amazing, but good and fun for trolling magic heavy armies (Vampires HATE this one).

• • Black Dragon Egg: This one was shit last edition, but with the addition of the close combat rules for Breath Weapons, it could be worth a lark (remember, Breath Weapons can turn ENTIRE combats around). Is actually really good now. S4 breath weapon is amazing. For trolling, put it on a dragon lord, and instead of charging, fly up to the corner of a big horde and chuck both breath weapons at the same time. That's what, 50+ S4 hits?

• • Potion of Strength:

• • Gem of Nightmares: 25 points to cause Fear... oh I'm sorry, to cause Fear for ONE turn. No.

• • The Guiding Eye: If you have a shooting Noble with Lifetaker set up with your Repeater Crossbowmen, this one could be worth a lark.

• Arcane Items:

• • Black Staff: Allows a Sorceress (using any Lore) to cast an extra Power of Darkness, not worth the expense.

• • Focus Familiar: Drop your Sorceress behind a piece of scenery where no one can see her, have her Focus Familiar pop out and blast people and question your opponent if they are, in fact, mad. Not good for an in-unit Sorceress though.

• • Darkstar Cloak: Good for a high level Sorceress who's going to be casting high value spells. Even if it's on a Level 2 or 3, it could still be worth it just to keep from sucking up power dice.

• • Sacrificial Dagger: Can be useful, especially if you're expecting magic to do a lot of the heavy lifting. Use sparingly, it doesn't take too long for you to lose steadfast.

• • Tome of Furion: Wanna make sure you get that spell you need in Lore of Death? This is the way to do it.

• Magic Standards:

• • Banner of Nagarythe: 125 points for Unbreakable and all friendly units within 12 get +1 CR. If you want to drop points on a magic banner for your BSB, this is the one to do it. Put him in a horde of Warriors and get ready to be the center of attention.

• • Hydra Banner: This one is okay, especially on a unit of Cold One Knights, but it's let down by the fact that it's competing with the Banner of Nagarythe, which is infinitely better for 50 points. If you're short on points, this could be okay, but Banner of Nagarythe is better at keeping your units locked in combat for Rank and Flank Tactics.

• • Dread Banner: No thank you. Too expensive and Fear sucks.

• • Standard of Slaughter: Great for a unit of Cold One Knights who absolutely HAVE to break that enemy on their charge. Only other unit that can take it is Black Guard and they won't be charging NEARLY as much.

• • Standard of Hag Graef: Not a bad banner by any means, but let down by the army's already high Initiative and the limited number of units who can take it (either Black Guard, Cold One Knights or a BSB). Could be worthwhile on a unit of Black Guard if you're worried about High Initiative enemies, but at I6, you don't usually have to worry about that. Not bad though.

• • Sea Serpent Standard: If you're already taking Corsairs, there's no reasoning with you, but this could be good for a small unit of them being used as Flankers. DON'T use it on a ranked unit, no better way to get them out of their position and fuck up your lines.

• • Banner of Murder: Tailor made for Witch Elves. Even if you put on Warriors or Corsairs or Black Guard, it's an excellent choice. Probably the best overall points-for-ability banner in the army. Also everybody else pays 45 for it while we pay 25. And people STILL take the 45 point version. do the math

• • Banner of Cold Blood: Could be worth it if you have a unit of Warriors that absolutely HAS to hold out this turn. Not a first choice, but not a bad one.

Magic

Dark Elf Sorceress have access to 5 Lores: Shadow, Fire, Metal, Death and their specific Lore, Dark Magic. Dark Magic remains a popular choice, due to it's technique of blasting the crap out of things. Fire is less popular, but it's low casting values means that it works well on a Level 1-2 Sorceress (don't bother putting it on a Level 4 though). Death is a solid lore, with a lot of damaging spells and ways of slicing heroes of out units. Shadow is a powerhouse lore under a lot of circumstances, but it has very little synergy with the other Lores and unlike Death, Fire or Dark Magic requires you to devote a Level 4 to it to operate at peak efficiency (as most of it's powerful spells would require silly numbers of dice for a Level 2 to cast reliably). But if you've only got 1 Level 4 Wizard, it can work well on it's own. Metal is only useful against a handful of enemies and is not even exceptionally useful against them. A pair of Sorceresses with Dark Magic and Fire/Death can knock out small enemy units that would normally get in the way of things, allowing you to focus your shooting on more important targets, and a single Supreme Sorceress with Shadow can boost your center quite a lot, which are the two primary setups for a tournament level list. Metal should still be avoided though.

Tactics

Say it with me: Rank. And. Flank. Draw your enemies onto your big ranked units (usually Warriors and Black Guard, though Corsairs and Executioners can work in a pinch), hold out for a turn and then charge them on the flanks with the big scary units. Dark Elves do this better than any other army in the game. Their Ranked units have high enough WS, I and LD to hold out for a little while and their flanking units hit brutally hard. They also have units that are exceptionally good at drawing enemy units out of position and just generally causing problems. (Harpies do this job exceptionally well, but Shades and Dark Riders do okay).

Playing aggressively is an option, but it can hard to back up under a lot of circumstances, and should only be attempted if you're battling a highly defensive list (Dwarves for example). But you will eventually, so you need to know how to play aggressively. Put frankly, it's why you take Hydras/Cold One Knights/Chariots/Witch Elves, aside from their uses as flanking units. You're going to need to charge early and often with your fast units, concentrating them on one flank to try and force it to collapse so you can sweep across the center. This strategy has a lot issues (mostly that you're going to have trouble combining charges, and unsupported head on attacks with your COKs and Chariots are risky) so if you're playing an army that's even slightly aggressive you should focus on rank and flank, or a variation. But there will be times when your opponent won't want to charge, so you'd better handle it.

Your shooting units, combined with your magic users can often cause significant damage to enemy units, but it's best to have them concentrate fire on a single unit to try and devastate it, instead of trying to spread it around.

Also, and this is important, never, ever, EVER forget Hatred. NEVER. Hatred is your biggest lifesaver.