Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Ynnari(7E)

Why Play Ynnari?

Pros:

• You can finally field one big mega-detachment of Craftworld Eldar, Dark Eldar, and Harlequins - show these Imperials they do not have the exclusivity on mega-detachments!
• You are gonna dominate the field quite easily. No for real dude, do not go overboard with this faction since you can do a ton of OP combos.
• Finally DE can have a decent comeback and we can all forget about their codex.
• If you want to go for a fluffy army, the Ynnari can be easily made to represent a reborn Aeldari Empire of sort that unifies forces from all of the old Eldar factions - in other words, go nuts with customization of units, colors etc; you could go overboard by representing all your units as provening from a different Craftworld/Kabal, and still be extremely fluffy.

Cons:

• People might simply not want to play you given the fact you are uber-cheesing an army by many considered OP (CE). I've seen people refuse to play against Ynnari at TOURNIMENTS. The player came in 3rd without rolling a die with 4 "incomplete's" on his sheet.
• TO might limit Ynnari at tourneys in the future, given the potentially gamebreaking combos you can make.
• People used to play CE will find that the Ynnari underperform when you try to play them similarly to CE - they are an infantry-heavy faction that plays extremely aggressively to make use of their unique rule Soulburst. This may (and will) make you radically change your playstyle.
• Remember that FAQ that said we couldn't put our units in allied transports before game start? Yeah, thanks to GW apparently units taken in a Ynnari force retain their original factions, which prevents you to (for example) deploy a unit of Wraithguard in a Raider. Of course if you want to play a long game you can still load them in turn 1.

Special Rules

Factions of the Ynnari

According to both the new Gathering Storm II FAQ and the book itself, the Ynnari are not a unified faction, so much as a union of the different Aeldari factions (Craftworld Eldar, Dark Eldar and Harlequins) that maintain their original faction, while at the same time getting a new one (the Ynnari one) and being allied at the level of Battle Brothers with each other.

What this means is that all the limitations put in place by the various FAQs released by GW apply - with special regard toward units embarking on Battle Brothers transports before deployment, which you still cannot do. The big exceptions to this rule are Yvraine, the Visarch and the Yncarne, all of which have only the Ynnari faction and can thus start the game embarked on any transport vehicle you can take in the Reborn Warhost/Ynnari formations. Note that this applies only to Ynnari tranports, and that they cannot start, for example, in a Raider taken as part of a Dark Eldar CAD (since in that case they would be Battle Brothers with the DE and not part of the same faction).

Moreover, note that you can take the three aforementioned units in any Aeldari faction detachment as if they were respectively a HQ or LoW of that faction (yup, this means Harlequins can take CAD/Allied detachments).

Strength from Death

Your units lose Ancient Doom, Battle Focus, and Power from Pain, but gain this (note: they gain it whether or not they lost anything, so you get it on e.g. a Sslyth or Ur-Ghul). The new rule confers no direct special benefit on its own; your units are just as squishy as they were before. However, things get extremely interesting when people start dying.

Every time a unit. friend or foe, is completely destroyed while within 7" of a non-vehicle unit that has this rule, then one of those units may immediately "Soulburst", which is a Move action, Shoot action, or Charge move as if it were the relevant phase, though a unit may only "Soulburst" once per turn.

This allows you to create some incredible chain reactions where units topple with spectacular effect. It is also not limited to your own turn, so your opponent may feel the sting when he destroys one of your squads, only to be charged by Howling Banshees, or fired at by Dark Reapers, maybe also get destroyed and trigger another nearby unit to Soulburst, potentially causing an avalanche of destruction to his own army in his own turn.

It can allow you to double tap units in the shooting phase. Say Fire Dragons destroy a transport within 7" of them? Not an uncommon occurrence. Well since they've legitimately destroyed a unit within range they may now immediately Soulburst and fire at the unlucky sods who just crawled out of the wreckage. Let's not get started on Wraithguard. Note that according to the new FAQ you cannot pick a unit that has one or more models in base contact with an enemy model, that is Falling Back or that has Gone to Ground - just something to remember next time you make your squad Go to Ground to get a better cover save (not that this will happen often with this faction).

This of course encourages you to play infantry heavy armies, since vehicles cannot use the rule. It also encourages you to play your units close together to ensure you actually benefit when your own squads go down, where a savvy opponent might try and isolate and destroy your units piecemeal, lest the destruction of one unit spark a shitstorm of retribution on his ass.

Be warned against charging into pre-existing melee combats, as although your "Soulburst" charge move might have been out of sequence, the initiative order continues to resolve as before, "including for models in the charging unit", which if you ask most people means continuing to descend towards zero from whatever position it was before you charged. This means if you charge into combat after your initiative step is over, you will never get to swing, so you may be walking into a power fist with nothing to defend yourself with. This particularly includes Hammer of Wrath attacks, as most combat deaths occur at initiative 9 or lower. Note that if you charge in a combat using Soulburst, you cannot issue challenges.

Warlord Traits

1. Lord of Rebirth: Warlord has IWND. Meh. A decent way to make an Autarch or Farseer a bit more survivable, but frankly it is the worst WT of the bunch due the presence of the Visarch and Yvraine.
2. Warden of Forgotten Wisdom: If your Warlord is a Psyker, you may select your powers instead of rolling for them. So much potential in this. For example, get this on a Farseer dipping into Telepathy for Invisibility, every time. Or he/she can just take Invisibility, Fortune and Forewarding to suddenly make any unilt look like a deathstar. Or just take Word of Phoenix and provide additional soulburst every turn. If your warlord isn't a psyker you re-roll this trait.
3. Walker of Many Paths: Warlord can choose a USR that lasts until the next movement phase: Furious Charge, Hit & Run, or Move Through Cover. A good pick - it adds flexibility to your force, which is always a good thing.
4. Master of Death: Roll a 6 to wound for any of your warlord's attacks and it gains the Instant-Death special rule.
5. Ruthless Commander: Warlord and all Ynnari units within 7" have Fearless.
6. Favoured of Ynnead: Warlord and their unit can make a Soulburst action within 14" instead of 7". Yvraine starts with this. A good WT all in all since it allows you to make use of Soulburst more often.

Artefacts of Ynnead

• Corag-Hai's Locket: If the model holding this slays one or more enemy models in close combat, regenerate a wound on a roll of 4+. Make your Eldar Lord into a Vampire Count.
  • Solitaires become borderline broken with this. They have a tendency to burn bright and fast given their low Toughness, but the ability to heal wounds by killing things in close combat effectively plugs this weakness.
• Hungering Blade: Very situational. It is a Fleshbane weapon with no AP value. If the bearer kills an Aeldari model with this weapon then they recover all lost wounds. Meh.
  • Alternately, giving this to a Harlequin Character (Read: Troupemaster) could be good. Same cost as a powersword, giving 5 WS6 Fleshbane attacks on the charge. Not something to sneeze at.
• The Lost Shroud: Turns your Eldar character into a tank. You get Eternal Warrior, Feel No Pain, and It Will Not Die. However, like the Mantle of the Laughing God in 6th edition, it removes the Independent Character rule from the model, so they can only ever go it alone. Best used by models with a Jetbike or lone units like a Solitaire.
  • Troupe Masters can also take this and have no Independent Character rule to lose, if you're keen on that sort of thing.
  • Note that Farseers in the Seer Council formation cannot take this relic due to the new FAQ.
  • This is perfect wargear for a Shadowseer from the Hero's Path Harlequin formation. It means the Shadowseer no longer cares so much if it gets hit by a S6 flamer template, or Vector Struck by a pissed-off Heldrake, and given that a Shadowseer from this formation can't join units anyway, losing the Independent Character special rule has no effect.
• Mirrorgaze: The wearer of this special helmet gets the Blind, Counter Attack, and Night Vision rules.
• Song of Ynnead: 18" range S1 AP5 pistol that fires poisoned shurikens giving it the Poisoned (2+) and Bladestorm USR's. But also causes enemies to have hallucinations of vengeful spirits when victims are killed by it. Granting it the Death-Jestery special rule: Deathsong: If a model is killed by this weapon, then its unit must take a morale check at the end of the shooting phase even if it's a Guard blob squad of fifty and you only kill 2% of the unit. Fun? Fun.
  • Putting this on a Solitaire is a good way to finally use his BS9, as you can swap his haywire grenades (a ranged weapon according to the Harlequin codex) for the gun.
• Soulsnare: A one use psychic grenade. Can be thrown 8" and has a small blast. While it is only S3, it has AP2 and the Instant Death rule.

Revenant Discipline Psychic Powers

Any Psykers with the Aeldari/Ynnari faction can opt to roll on this power chart in addition to any disciplines they know. (Note: despite it being present in the leaked appendix from the enhanced edition, no unit actually has the "Terrors of the Warp" rule, so Ynnari Psykers use the Revenant discipline as normal.)

• Primaris - Spirit Hook - WC1. 18" Focussed Witchfire that doesn't have a weapon profile. If your Leadership value is higher than the target then they suffer a single S6 hit. Otherwise they are struck at S3. No Armour or Cover saves are permitted (Invulnerable saves are though) and the power has no effect on vehicles.

1. Shield of Ynnead - WC1. Blessing that targets the psyker - all friendly units within 7" get a 6+ invulnerable save if they do not already have an invuln save (new FAQ). Better than nothing; the doubt now is whether it can stack with Sanctic Daemonology's "Sanctuary" power for a 5+ due to the new wording.
2. Storm of Whispers - WC1. A 9" S3 AP2 nova that shoots 2D6 times with ignores cover and pinning. Although it is hampered by short range and low strength, the potential for a high number (average = 7, noticing a theme?) of armour and cover ignoring shots is not to be sniffed at.
3. Word of the Phoenix - WC2. Pick a friendly unit with Strength from Death within 24". That unit may immediately make a Soulburst action.
   • Consider this your uber form of "Vanhel's Dance Macabre" where you can rapidly get your units where they need to be. You've just moved, so move again... Or just get a free round of shooting if you're already close enough. No real point in getting a unit to charge during the psychic phase.
4. Ancestor's Grace - WC2. A better form of the "Enhance" runes of battle power combined with "Will of Asuryan" from the runes of fate. It gives a friendly unit +1 on WS, BS, I, A & Ld, as well as Adamantium Will.
5. Unbind Souls - WC2. Another witchfire, this time 12" range with S4 and no AP value. Though you do fire a number of shots equal to the number of models in the target unit and if you cause any casualties then nearby units are eligible for a Soulburst, even if you didn't destroy the unit completely. See that skyblight swarm over there camping like a little bitch and laughing at you with its objective secured and respawn ability? Yeah now all those gargoyles are dust. Use against a Green tide formation if you want to lose Ork playing friends.
6. Gaze of Ynnead: - WC3. 12" S10 AP1 Assault 1, Ignores Cover, and no Invulnerable saves can be taken against this power. While this pretty much a guaranteed wound, just bear in mind that it is WC3 for a single shot that can still miss or just cause 1 wound on T6+/Eternal Warrior model. Good power to have, but somehow situational due to many, many ways to deal with tough models already available to this army.

Unit Analysis

The gist of the Faction is that you get to use Eldar, Dark Eldar, and Harlequins units together. Since it would take a lot of effort to list all the units on here (as well as figure out which ones are better at which rolls), they are not yet added. In the meantime you can refer to their own articles to see what they're good at. We'll get to it where any new tactics for old units begin to stand out.

Eldar - Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Eldar(7E)

• Note: sadly you cannot use the Avatar of Khaine

Dark Eldar - Warhammer 40,000/7th Edition Tactics/Dark Eldar

• Note: you cannot take Mandrakes, Drazhar, or any unit from the Haemonculi Covens (Haemonculi, Wracks, Talos, Chronos, Grotesques) Also note that while you are losing PfP on all your units, you are getting Soulburst on all your units (even ones that did not have/lose PfP); while you hit harder as a result of the new special rules you are more fragile as a general rule.

Harlequin - Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Eldar Harlequins(7E)

• Note: You can finally play Harlequins in a CAD if you want, since you can include the Ynnari HQs in all Eldar factions.

HQ

• Yvraine, Herald of Ynnead ^FoBt: WS/BS/I8 with Eternal Warrior, Stubborn, and is a ML2 Psyker who gets D3 extra warpcharges only she can use thanks to her Gyrinx Familiar. She can dip into Daemonology (Sanctic) and Revenant powers. She has a 4++ invulnerable save to mitigate her shitty 6+ armor save. Wargear-wise, she has the Kha-vir, Sword of Sorrows, which is a S+1 Huskblade. Better make use of this rule below...
  • Herald of Ynnead: IWND on steroids. Every time an Aeldari model dies within 7" of her, roll a die and on a 4+ she regains a lost wound. In addition, if it was a Psyker then she gets +1 to her Mastery level, to a maximum of Level 4, and generates an additional Psychic power immediately.
• The Visarch, Sword of Ynnead ^FoBt: WS/BS/I7 with a 3+ Armor Save, and can auto-LoS for Yvraine if she's in the same unit, and always passes Glorious Interventions for her (take note that while he does not have to be the closest model to Yvraine to use his special rule, one model from the unit must be within 6" of Yvraine). Rules-wise he has Stubborn, Eternal Warrior, Rampage, and Precision Strikes in addition to the usual rules. His relic sword Asu-Var is an S+2 AP2 two-handed melee weapon with Silence, where every enemy unit within 3" must use their lowest Ld value instead of their highest Ld. Side note: he always gets a Warlord trait, even if he isn't the Warlord.
  • Champion of Ynnead: His nifty rule which allows him to regenerate a wound whenever an Aeldari model dies within 7" of him on a 4+. In addition, if the model was a character then the Visarch gains an extra attack (to a maximum of 7)
  • He's similar to Vargard Obyron: a bodyguard unit that could be taken alone, but you really want him along with Yvraine. On his own he's like an inferior phoenix lord, capable of blitzing his way through combat or challenges with a high number of high initiative S5 AP2 attacks, but he really needs to get momentum going to build up more power. However, he's fragile and has no invulnerable save, only a 3+ Armour save and only three wounds, so you have to cross your fingers and hope he kills his opponent before they start swinging back. Take him with Yvraine and keep them together as a pair. Technically she is the superior combatant anyway, so the Visarch can tag in when things get too hairy and let her recover.
  • Consider taking the Visarch with a group of Dire Avengers while equipping their Exarch with a Shimmer Shield. Since the Shimmer Shield confers a 5++ to the entire squad the Visarch also gets it when joining said squad. Hide the Exarch from challenges and incoming fire and enjoy your new invuln save on the Visarch. While there are other units that synergize better with the Visarch's melee prowess, the Dire Avengers can hose an enemy target down to a few units with the Visarch & Exarch finishing them off in assault.
• Eldrad Ulthran ^CE: Basically a Farseer on steroids - Eldrad has all options available to a normal Farseer plus some more, but cannot take a jetbike (big minus, but more than compensated by his other tricks tho, among which giving D3 units the USR Scout due to his Warlord trait). 3W, T4, an improved invuln save of 3++, Mastery lv.4 (on top of all the normal wargear of a Farseer) ensure that Eldrad may be a boon to any Ynnari army. He can roll for powers off Divination, Demonology Sanctic, Telepathy, Revenant and Runes of Fate tables. Of note is his Staff of Ulthamar, which is essentially a staff with AP3, Force, Fleshbane and the added chance of regaining a warp charge every time he casts a power on a 5+ - note that this extra warp charge does not have to be spent by him, but can be used by other psykers too unlike Yvraine. Note that he carries a Witchblade s well as the Staff, thus giving him +1A due to neither of them being Specialist Weapon/Requiring Two hands. In other words, even in melee he can dish out the hurt - activate Force for ID, and go to town with 3 attacks on the charge that wound the enemy on a 2+, striking at I5 with AP3 and ID! Do not put him in melee since he does not belong there, but alas do not be too scared of letting him go toe to toe with unnamed, minor squad Sergeants. In a Ynnari army Eldrad's main purpose if to dish out the hurt in the psykik phase, thus allowing other units to reposition/make shooting attacks out of phase via Soulburst.
• Prince Yriel ^CE: A front-line HQ, Yriel is noteworthy in that he is not a CQC beast in the same way as some of the Phoenix Lords, but he can still pull his own weight. He comes with WS6, I7 and W4; a 3+ armor save and a 4++ ensure his survival until he can deliver the pain in CQC (note that he has not ranged capacity - disregard his BS6) with his Spear - the Armourbane, Fleshbane, AP3 more than make up for Yriel low native strength -. Note that the Spear makes him re-roll successful saves of 6 due to the Cursed special rule. His other Remnant of Glory is the Eye of Wraith, which allows him to throw down a S6 AP3 pie plate that delivers a number of hits equal to how many models are under said pieplate marker to each unit, friend or foe - this can be done once in melee instead of his normal attacks, but note that only wounds caused to enemy units count toward combat resolution. For kickers, he has got the Ambush of Blades warlord trait (which allows him and all Eldar/Ynnari units within 12" to re-roll 1s To Wound for a phase) and the Path of Command rule.
• Illic Nightspear ^CE: A versatile HQ choice that can buff a unit of Rangers to the point of actually making them worthwhile. The gist of Illic is that he is a HQ choice that possesses both individual power - a great BS9 coupled with a Warlord trait that gives him split-fire (on a weapon that has the Sniper rule and that causes ID/automatic pen regardless of AV on any roll of 6 to wound), in addition to Hatred, PE Necrons, and a special rule that makes so that all shots fired by Illic are Precision Shots - and buffs to the squad he is attached to - Shrouded USR, capacity to Infiltrate anywhere on the map outside of impassable terrain, while bringing along a unit of Rangers if he starts in one (as well as giving said unit the Sharpshooter USR) -. All in all an excellent support HQ that you will find a valid use for in almost any Ynnari army due to his ability to literally remove any character/model from play with his special abilities, thus causing Soulbursts.
• Asurmen ^CE: A good Special Characters in terms of survivability with his Shield of Grace (4++, upped to 3++ in a challenge), Asurmen possesses both Counter-attack and the Defense Tactics ability (which allows him to choose between Overwatch at BS2 - with re-rolls due to his Twin-Linked Avenger Shuriken Catapult - or get Counter Attack + Stubborn when charged) in addition to the USR Counter-Attack and Fearless. On the offense, he has the aforementioned Twin-linked Avenger Shuriken Catapult and an AP2 Master-Crafted +1S diresword (which causes any model which has suffered a wound to take a separate Ld test for each wound suffered and be straight-up removed from play if said test is not passed - did I mention Asurmen is a beast in a challenge?). All in all an expensive unit but pretty good for its points, which finds use both in challenges to remove Characters (thus causing Soulburst) and in Avengers squads to buff them up. Not ethat he gets D3 Warlord traits from CE codex table, re-rolling duplicates.
• Jain Zar ^CE: Jain is pure pain for your opponent and she comes with simple instructions: direct toward opponent units, apply pain as necessary, rinse and repeat. Apart from jokes she is more than capable of dishing out the hurt with her weapons - her triskele is a 12" assault 4 S4 AP2 weapon, and her CQC weapon is S user AP2 with Shred. Add to this that units cannot fire Overwatch against her/the unit she joins due to her Mask (while also causing every enemy unit within 6" to be debuffed with a -5WS and -5I) and that enemy units locked in combat with her get a further -2Ld debuff. In CQC she has 4A natively (5 on the charge) and strips an enemy character she is in a challenge with of one weapon with her special Disarming Strike rule (at the cost of one of her own attacks). The only thing that can describe her is challenge monster - every aspect of Jain is designed with the single purpose of getting her in CQC (from her fixed warlord trait -Falcon's Swiftness- to her Acrobatic rule, her and any Banshees she joins will be running d6+6" and charging 2d6+3..while having Fleet) and start the blending time. Keep her away from MC and GC since her save will be negated by Smash and she does not have an invuln save (but has got EW). She is by far one of the best Phoenix Lords for a Ynnari army, with her focus on CQC in an army that plays as an aggressive faction focused on short-range fighting.
  • You can even try to combo her with some scorpion-claw-wielding exarch. Just give those guys +1A\I and engage the same combat with Jin Gray and Exarch, then watch the filthy green crab throw 11 attacks at anyone who has I lower than 7 in a challenge.
• Karandras ^CE: Karandras possesses all the rules of Striking Scorpions natively with the added bonus of Night Vision and a better mandiblaster (his Scorpions Bite, which automatically hits a target at initiative 10 and wounding him on 2+ - 4+ if GC - and ignoring armour saves). Speaking about CQC, his melee options are a strength boosting sword (which gives him +1 attack for wielding 2 non-specialist weapon) and the Scorpions Claw (a power fist that strikes at initiative which is not a Specialist Weapon). Of note the fact that he lacks Monster Hunter and that he strangely can't gain an extra attack for each step of initiative he has over an enemy. But on the plus side, if he Infiltrates he gets Shrouded until he shoots or fights. In addition to all of this, if you so choose he can automatically arrive (with a full squad of Scorpions) from reserves on turn 2, while choosing from which table edge you want him to enter from - including your opponent's. All in all not the worst Phoenix Lord - while surely not as effective as Jain in CQC or Fuegan in the shooting phase, he comes nonetheless with some tricks up his sleeve, thus ensuring his versatility on the battlefiels; a very solid choice for a Ynnari army, primarily due to his ability to quickly dispatch enemy units to allow other units to make use of Soulburst (or allow his own unit to do so).
• Fuegan ^CE:Fuegan comes with a basic S5, T4 and W3, making him pretty resilient for a space elf; in melee his CQC is a S User AP1 Armourbane weapon which allows him to make short work of enemy models (5 attacks on the charge). For the ranged department he comes with a standard Firepike; he can moreover re-roll one failed To Hit, To Wound or armour penetration roll per turn and adds +1 to the result on the Vehicle Damage Chart. And there is more! He get FNP for free, and each time he suffers an unsaved wound he gains +1 to his Strength and Attacks for the rest of the game! Jesus - add a warlock with Renewer to his squad to just heal him up (even in combat) and he gets even more OP. All in all an expensive HQ unit, but an excellent one that is perfectly suited for a Ynnari army..scratch that - he is the Phoenix Lord you want in such an army, with his overwhelming close-range and CQC hitting power, which allows him to melt away (puns ftw!) his enemies, just to turn around and kill even more of them due to Soulburst.
• Baharroth ^CE: An underwhelming Phoenix Lord, Baharroth is relatively weak in CQC for its cost and lacks weapons capable of dealing with TEQ - the gun he uses is basically the regular lasblaster with an higher strength, while for CQW he has a power sword with Blind. But what he has in spades is speed. Thanks to his Special Rule, when he enters from Deep Strike (no scatter due to his Warlord trait) any enemy unit within 6 must take a I test or get blinded. Combining this with a 18" regular move and 1d6+3 run move, Baharroth and any Hawk squad he joins can move anywhere they may be needed in a relatively short time, dealing with weaker enemy units (or even dealing with Vehicles thanks to Haywire Grenades). He has Hit & Run natively, but unlike his aspect he strangely doesn't have Intercept. All in all a relatively cheap-ish unit, yet not worth it in a Ynnari army due to the sheer number of better HQ options that you have available.
• Maugan Ra ^CE: Relatively more dakka-oriented that his Apsect, Maugan Ra's weapon has 2 different shooting profiles from which you can choose - both are S6 AP5, but one is rending assault4, the other is Assault 1 Poisoned (2+) Pinning that causes Bio-Cataclysm (If a non-vehicle model dies to this gun, place a Large Blast template where said model used to stand. Everyone under that takes an S5 AP4 hit that ignores cover). Rules-wise he comes with Night Vision, Hatred (Chaos Daemons) and Whirlwind of Death (he gets to fire the Maugetar twice using either of these ammo types, even at two different targets). Also don't forget his Warlord Trait which gives him Split Fire and the fact that he can dish out pain the melee too due to the melee profile of Maugetar, basically a power scythe with +2S and AP3, making him not bad against anything but TEQ. All in all, whi;e there are better HQ options for a Ynnari force, he can still earn his points back if used properly.
  • Opinion the 2nd: With soulburst, he can fire 16 S6 AP5 Rending shots, that's approaching Pask-nisher levels of dakka. Ok you can say he has less accuracy (BS7 rerolls 1s on 5+), but can you send Pask into the middle of the enemy, firing at 4 different targets while having 2+ armor and a relic blade to charge whoever is left over? His 36" range allows him to be useful from the start and even as you roll up the field, the range is never wasted. That Manticore you have in the backfield? It can't fire now cos I rendingly penetrated your front armor. Now watch me mulch your MEQ in melee
  • Bonus points for equipping your model with two shotguns and screaming "DIE DIE DIE" as you shoot in every possible direction.
• Autarch ^CE: The autarch is the generic commander that can be customized to suit different battlefield roles while still buffing the army with its special rule The Path of Command (you can modify each Reserve rolls by +1 or -1). As said its real value lies in the fact that the unit can make use of virtually all of the Eldar's best gadgets. For 70 points base you get a unit that comes stock with haywire and Plasma grenades, a pistol, 3+ armor and a 4++ inv save. As previously said, they are one of the most versatile units available to CE; the new wargear rules means that a kitted out Autarch can benefit whatever squad he gets attached to - for example, a single Banshee mask will allow his entire unit to ignore overwatch, wings means he can now skyleap (or just move 18") around the battlefield bringing fusion gun/pistols wherever he likes; a Jetbikes and Relentless reaper launcher or Uldanorethi Long Rifle means business - the combos are endless. Autarchs can also equip Remnants of Glory and the new Ynnari relics to be even more customisable. It is always advised to equip him with a Jetbike for that +1T, Relentless, Twin-linked Shuriken Catapult, 12" move, 36" Turbo-boost or 2D6 Assault jump and Jinking cover save, since all of this will help the Autarch survive S6 much easier. Note, this lets you take a Laser Lance, which is strictly better than a Power Sword - even if you never shoot it or charge, you still have what amounts to a Power Sword at a 5 point discount. All in all a decent HQ option for a Ynnari army, suited to cover any role that the other HQ choice cannot cover.
  • Note 1: You will always choose the Skyrunner upgrade unless you want to put the Autarch in a transport. at 15 points it's the same price as the Swooping Hawk Wings and 5 points more than the Warp Spider thingy. You get a ton of special rules and access to the Laser Lance which is just amazing. Your default choice will be the skyrunner and you may on rare occasion pick on of the other two options but only for certain specific situations.
  • Note 2: Take with a Banshee mask and have him join up with a Skyrunner Seer council for deathstar goodness. One of the few situations where you may want to take either the Warp Spider or Swooping Hawk Movement options. Why? Because Eldrad is a Badass for a foot council and shadowseers in your deathstar are pretty fantastic. If you do decide to go for a foot-star your movement choices are as such. Swooping Hawk Wings give Hammer of Wrath, Warp Spiders give Relentless. Take the Swooping Hawk if you want to focus on assaults, take the Warp Spider if you want to take a Heavy weapon. Both are Bulky so you aren't going to put them into a transport. Last option is to take no movement upgrade in which case you are putting him into a transport.
• Farseer ^CE: An extremely versatile character, which can be tailored to different roles depending on the enemy. It is the army main source of psychic support with its mastery lv.3, a plethora of items to help said versatility (see down) and the ability to roll on 5 different disciplines (Divination, Telepathy, Demonology Sanctic, Runes of Fate and Revenant). All of these factors ensure that this HQ will always be able to support your army (or deal its fair share of damage to the enemy) and that taking 1 or 2 will never disappoint. He can be tailored by taking relics from either the Ynnari and the CE lists; another thing to note is that you can give him a jetbike and a singing spear (you should always do both).
• Warlock Conclave ^CE: The Runes of Battle is a useful yet relatively inoffensive discipline that has buffs that applied to its own unit, and had some situational debuffs to enemy units. By and large the Runes were better suited to Warlocks who lead Guardian squads than a squad of warlocks itself. The new Revenant Powers are either much more directly killy or provide exceptional buffs to nearby units, both traits that the Runes could never hope to match, so the Warlock Conclave makes for a great unit to follow your own units around and support your army. There is still no reason to ever take the Warlock Conclave as its own HQ choice as several of the formations require them.
  • Alternative opinion: in very particular situations it might be a decent cheap HQ if you want to generate (relatively) cheap warp charges for the main psykers of the army (aka farseers) and mix-max a detachment. Yvraine in particular appears to be the best candidate to take advantage of the Seer Council, as she can tank a few hits before taking advantage of their deaths to replenish her health and improve her own Mastery Level.
• Spiritseer ^CE: WIth a Mastery lv.2 and the ability to roll on 3 different charts (Runes of Battle, Telepathy and Daemonology Sanctic) the spiritseer is - when taken in a normal army - a much weaker HQ choice than the Farseer; this changes in case you make use of many Wraith units due to its ability Spirit Mark, which allows them to re-roll To Hit rolls of 1 against enemies within 12" of the spiritseer. In an Ynnari army, the spiritseer can find its place primarily in the formations, but it might be a decent cheap HQ choice in case you needed to round up your psychic support.
• Archon ^DE: A very close combat oriented warrior that can carry the favoured gun of Kabalite Trueborn. Just over a third of the cost of the Visarch, an Archon comes with the same statline and a 5+ save - this can be upped to a 2++,a 4++ or a 4+/6++ for comparitively little expense by making use of the optional wargear he can take. There is the option to take the Dark Eldar's Phantasm Grenade Launcher (take only if you plan to use a Freakshow list), and to replace his CCW (he comes equipped with both a Pistol and this) with a Power Sword, Agoniser or a Huskblade (depending on the role you want to give him, slap the Huskblade and a Shadow Field on him AP3 ID on a 2++ tank). He can also delve into the Artefacts of Cruelty. The really interesting, and thoroughly exploitable piece of wargear the Archon can bring is a Webway Portal. This gives them and whatever unit they are attached to a no-scatter Deep-Strike; this is conferred to the transport he/the unit he joins is in. Take note tho that while a Transport containing the Archon will not scatter, any AOE abilities (such as the Ld debuffs available in various forms in the army) will not have effect until the unit disembark from said transport.
  • Take note that the Grenade Launcher comes with the Soulfright special rule - if you wounded (Nope, it's on a successful hit which is way better given the lack of poison and the S1 AP- nature of the launcher) an enemy with the Launcher, that unit has to take a Ld test at the end of the Shooting phase and if they fail they suffer as many wounds as points the test was failed by (with no armour/cover saves allowed). This could be awesome in a Freakshow army where you cumulate debuffs to the enemy's Ld, but given that it does nothing to enemies that are Fearless/have ATSKNF (and that said armies constitute a good 50%+ of all the armies nowadays..) you might find its use limited in scope. Still worth a shot given its low cost, but do not expect too much. --Or, you can stack leadership debuffs (Armor of Misery and a character with the Harlequin leadership debuffing artefact) and use this to silly effect--provided, of course, the unit you're targeting isn't Fearless/ATSKNF.
• Court of the Archon ^DE: An odd assortment of units that could be your toolbox, your tanky bodyguard or the cheapest HQ in the game. Everything but the Sslyth hits at I5. You can take up to ten of the following in any combination.
  • Lhamaen: 10 points for an ablative wound with a Pistol, a Poison(2+) AP- sword and a 5+ save. Not useless. Not overly useful. You will see elsewhere on the page suggestions to take this as a way of almost completely dodging the HQ tax when building a Reborn Warhost detachment. Or 100pts for 30 attacks on the charge wounding on 2s due to their unique poisoned swords.
  • Ur Ghul: 15 points for another ablative wound. This one has S4, Feel No Pain and Furious Charge and no save.
  • Medusae: 25 points for an ablative wound that you probably don't want to ablate. The stats and 5+ save are nothing special, but the S4 AP3 Template can be very useful against charges and Cover-Hugging scrubs.
  • Sslyth: 25 points for the BEST bodyguard models in the unit. S/T 5 really makes it stand out, especially with its 2 Wounds, though it is let down by it's 5+ save. In Combat, Sslyth don't slouch either; 5 Attacks on the charge with Feel No Pain. Dakka wise, the Sslyth carry both a Splinter Pistol and Shardcarbine.
• Succubus ^DE: WS and Initiative 8, BS6, Eldar Strength and Toughness with 4 Attacks base and a 4++ save in the Assault Phase, these deadly ladies are more than happy to mess with the best in Close Quarters. Options for kit come with the obligatory Deldar character choice to take a Blast Pistol and an array of Close Combat Weapons. Power Sword and Agoniser are standard fare, but the Archite Glaive makes for some fun. With two options of attack, either Two-Handed S+1 AP2 or Single Handed AP3. Wych Cult Weapons are also available and can help with Horde Munching, but aren't really worth taking over the other options. Access to the Artefacts of Cruelty is granted.
  • Note: the Succubus can also take a WWP for surprise rape shenanigans. Take this with the armour of misery and a shadowseer with mask of secrets who has psychic shriek and/or mirror of minds to drink your opponents tears and annihilate whatever the hell you want (tip: you could go all the way and ally in a formation from the DE Coven supplement for that delicious -1Ld debuff that comes with their formations, thus upping the Ld debuff to -5).
• Lelith Hesperax ^DE: Lelith is true definition of a CQC-optimized character: WS9, the ability to re-roll failed to-hit and to-wound rolls, a 4++ save (upped to 3++ in CQC) and the op-esque rule that denies the enemy his armor save in CQC, all of this makes so that any enemy unit she comes in contact with is as good as dead. The only exceptions to this rule are units that she cannot really hurt (S3 is not the best game in town after all) and/or enemy characters that come with bs saves such as a re-rollable 2++ and such (and even against such opponents she might have a chance due to sheer number of attacks - 5 base + 1 for dual wielding + 1 on the charge, before taking into account that she comes natively with Rampage). All in all, a CQC blender like many others in this army, which will find herself at home in a Ynnari force due to the faction focus on CQ shooting and CQC - having said this, take note of the fact that there are better CQC options available to you (Fuegan spring to mind, or an Archon with Shadowfield and Huskblade).
  • Note: her focus is on hurting tarpits, not challenging characters armed with 2++/similar invuln saves. While her abilities make so that any unnamed character will simply die once in a challenge with Lelith, take on any properly kitted-out SM Chaptain/Chaos Lord/etc and she will die. Note that she is effectively WS10 due to her WT Blood Dancer (+1 WS).

Troops

• Guardian Defenders ^CE: The basic infantry unit of Craftworld Eldar, priced at 9 pts a model. They come with a 5+ armor save and a shuriken catapult (12 range, assault 2 Ap5 Bladestorm) that they can shoot at BS4. While this might seem underwhelming, remember that Bladestorm allows you to hit at AP2 and thus threaten both MEW and TEQ due to the sheer number of shots you will put out. You can take a heavy weapon mount for every 10 Guardians up to 2 (remember that our platforms are new, individual models added to the squad and that you can equip them with a variety of heavy weaponry), as well as a warlock (lvl 1 psyker). While the Guardians may be a semi-worthy unit in a CE army due to their cheap cost and potential AP2 shots, in a Ynnari army they are outclassed by the other choices since Ynnari play much more aggressively than CE via the Soulburst rule. Of note is that they come with plasma grenades.
• Storm Guardians ^CE: Basically the standard Guardians but with a more aggressive nuance. Armed with sword and Shuriken pistol, the Storm Guardians are much more suited for the role of basic Ynnari Troops, if one really wishes to go for a CE-majority force (hint: harlequins troops are better suited for this role, but more expensive). They come with a 5+ armor save, I5 and an extra melee attack due to the sword+pistol. They can equip up to 2 special weapons per squad (thus leading to even more MSU, the right way to go in a Ynnari army) and come with plasma grenades like their standard counterparts. So far so good - they would be a decent if cheap melee/close range unit if not for their S3 which basically neuters them in said capacity. They have the USR fleet, but not much else to go on. The unit on its own is not horrible, but the problem is that there are much better melee units (just to go with CE, Striking Scorpions, Shining Spears, Howling Banshees, Wraithblades, etc), and much better ways to deliver meltas (e.g. Fire Dragons). Of note is that while the the Guardian Stormhost makes these guys somewhat decent, giving them special weapons for free, they are still inferior to the other choices available to a Ynnari player - tl;dr pass.
• Windriders ^CE: With 3+ armor, T4 and BS4, the Windriders are the MEQ of the Ynnari forces - just better. The great maneuverability offered by the jetbike allows them to hide to deny LoS (remember that 2D6 move in the assault phase) to enemies whose weapons would ignore their 3+ - and if a 3+ does not cut it, a 4+ cover save just might. The jetbike comes with a twin-linked shuriken catapult (for what is essentially 90% accuracy for a weapon that strikes at AP2 on every 6 you roll) but can swap it for a shuriken cannon or a scatter laser (former for general-purpose fire, latter for light armor wrecking).
  • Note 1: Take note that you can take a Warlock with them. Doing this is a very good idea for 2 main reasons: free Conceal for everybody for a sweet sweet 2+ cover save in the open when jinking, and a Singing Spear for S9 that can threaten even AV13/14.
  • Note 2: Quick math from the CE article - max squad is 270 points, and they can put out 40 S6 shots with scatter laser or 30 S6 shots with Bladestorm (for an average 5 AP2 shots). This is gonna put a dent in any squad you target.
• Rangers ^CE: Essentially a BS4 platform for a Heavy 1 rifle (48' range) at AP6 with the Sniper USR. The unit itself comes with Infiltrate, Fleet, Stealth and Move Through Cover - theoretically their focus should be on moving in, unleashing a massed targeted fire, and then get the out of dodge; practically, they are sitting ducks since they fire snapshots with the rifle if they move (and the only reason to bring them is their rifle). On a more positive note, this unit might actually be worth it in an Ynnari force; why? Because Battle Focus does not work with heavy weapons on non-relentless models, but Soulburst does! Usage of a maxed out unit of 10 would work something like this: place them in cover/infiltrate close to the enemy, unleash massed fire (10 shots at BS4 results in 66% hitting; of these 1/2 wound due to Sniper USR for a rough 50% chance to damage MEQ counting the AP2 chance) and then Soulburst the hell out of there. Tl;dr do not expect exceptional things from them, but do not underestimate them either.
  • While knife-fighting with your rangers remains an option you may want to bring 2 stock units to sit on objectives in cover and snipe. While you may not get a Soulburst on the rangers themselves they can help mop up an enemy unit that somehow survived to allow another unit to Soulburst instead. Meanwhile they can do this at the low price of 60 points for a very effective unit. When used in this way you're basically using them to minimize your troop tax to spend on other toys.
• Dire Avengers ^CE: What is there not to like about Dire Avengers? To start with, they are the only Troops level aspect warriors and swing around with BS/WS4, I4 and Ld9 (10 with Exarch, which you should always take). As a general rule, they are a decent basic infantry with some extra tricks to survive the battle - their shuriken weapons have a range of 18 compared to usual 12, which when combined with Bladestorm (every 6 is AP2) and Battle Focus ensure the Dire Avengers have a pretty good chance of avoiding the enemy charges while retaining a decent level of firepower (They lose Battle Focus here). Compared to average Guardians, they rock +1Ld, 4+ save and the special rule Defensive Tactics, which gives you the choice between Overwatching at BS2 or gaining Counter-Attack and Stubborn once charged (but if you choose the latter, no Overwatch for you). A decent and fluffy option, yet inferior in many ways to the other options available to the Ynnari forces - in other words, take them only in their formation.
• Kabalite Warriors ^DE: You know them, you love them. They're your cheap scoring, your anti-tank, and your source of Raiders and Venoms. The big question is whether to take them in 5-man Venom or 10-man Raider squads - the 5 man squad puts out 17 poison shots (and 22 in rapid fire range) and costs 110 points, while the 10 man puts out an effective 13 to 27 poison shots at 160 points thanks to Splinter Racks. Either squad can take a blaster, but the presence of the Raider's Dark Lance and their ability to take another Dark Lance makes the 10 man squad better at early game and emergency tank-hunting. Once you get within Splinter Rifle range it's wasteful to shoot at tanks. Venoms are better at Alpha striking infantry from far away, so keeping them hidden behind Ravagers or stationary cover for much of the game is a good idea.
  • tl;dr If you want somewhat (we're talking relative to the DE here) more durability and objective-camping ability in exchange for less initial fire power, take a pair of kitted-out raider squads. If you want more initial firepower take Venoms instead. 2 Raider Squads costs approximately 3 Venom Squads.
  • Running 10-man squads disembarked and in area terrain also helps troop survivability. This way when the raider goes boom, you don't lose half the squad due to S4 hits and bad rolls. Give them a splinter cannon, and let them pour out shots. If you get turn 1, you can move up with the raider, disembark into some cover around midfield, and get even more done with them than you ever could in the raider.
  • Strictly speaking,there isn't really much point to the shredder. Even though it is S6, it has no AP, meaning even Ork boys can take saves against the thing. Just buy a splinter cannon instead. Much better and no finicky blast templates to mess with.
  • At 40pts, Kaballite mobs on foot will reliably make their points back against all infantry and MCs. They're expendable and your opponent will always over or underestimate them to your benefit.
• Wych Squad ^DE: Combined with a lucky Combat Drug roll will still mean these Wyches mulch through Hordes with a bunch of high initiative attacks. Give them a Raider to improve their mobility as always, and consider deepstriking them to avoid their useless first turn.
  • Wyches best function now seems to be as delivery vectors for your independent characters, since they can hold high value units such as Terminators in place while Lilith/Succubus steadily dismantles them. As mentioned above they also function against low value Hordes by striking first with massed attacks, but other Dark Eldar units such as Beastmasters can do that better.
  • All three Wych weapon choices are AP5, S-, and 5 points each. It should be noted that ALL weapons mentioned are taken on both hands, meaning that they'll always get another attack for having a second melee weapon. Each grants a particular type of rerolls.
    • Shardnet and Impaler: Reroll 1s both To-Hit and To-Wound
    • Razorflails: Reroll failed To Hit
    • Hydra Gauntlets: Reroll failed To Wound
  • At first glance, these three choices seem roughly identical. However, Weapon Skill 4 means that Wyches will only hit on 5s against WS9 and up. To be honest, if Wyches are against something with WS9, they're there as a tarpit, not to do damage. Razorflails, thus, are mostly trash. The Shardnet and Impaler, condoning rerolls of all 1s in close combat, seems useful. However, it quickly pales in comparison to the last weapon. Hydra Gauntlets, thanks to the Shred rule, re-roll ALL to-wound rolls. This is a much bigger boon than any of the competition. Wyches are Strength 3, meaning they'll wound Space Marines on 5s. Re-rolling this is much more important than rerolling the 3s to hit, since there are simply more chances to fail. The benefits against Toughness 3 units are also notable; most Toughness 3 models are also WS3, meaning the Wyches already hit them on 3s, rendering razorflails relatively redundant.
• Harlequin Troupe ^H: The basic troop for the Harlequins and a great addition to the Ynnari forces. Essentially a band of giggling murderclowns that come in squads of 5-12 complete with a Troupe Master (who is a character and that could serve as the army Warlord like it does for the Harlequins - even though there are much better options in the Ynnari roster). The squad comes with the USR Hit and Run, Fleet, Fear and Furious Charge - all USR that make them an excellent assault choice for a Ynnari army, especially given their equipment (plasma grenades, flip belts make getting a charge off with them a joke) and the fact that each member of the Troupe can be customized individually, with any model being able to take any harlequin items combination, thus allowing you to fit in some anti vehicle weapons in your squad alongside anti-infantry. All in all a very valid unit option for their price and what they bring to the table (all their USR, and a 5++ save natively). Remember to buy Haywire Grenades to help you deal with vehicles - for the rest, take note that your troupe master can buy Harlequins and Ynnari relics.
  • Note: Even though you can in fact customize every single squad member, resist the temptation to do so (indicatively, include 1 generic model per every model with specialized weaponry - your clowns will die as soon as a competent unit does so much as sneeze at them; they are a glass cannon, always remember that if you want to use them properly.
  • Note II: You can take the names Troupe from the Death Masque set instead of one of your generic Troupes according to the FAQ: The Company of the Threefold Stranger and Death's Companions. Two pre-upgraded troupes, with a unique character in each, one with run and shoot and one with run and charge (respectively). Despite being cheaper, both are pretty terrible; the Death's Companions leader, Dusk, is a normal player with 2W (which means he only gets 2A, compared to the 3A of the normal Troupe Master); he's also equipped with the default (and terrible) CCW. The Company of the Threefold Stranger's leader, the Lambent Prince, is a Troupe Master with a Power Sword, Haywire Grenades, and Shuriken Pistol.

Elites

• Black Guardians ^FoBt: The first of the new units, it is essentially a fusion of the standard Guardian Defenders and Storm Guardians. The Black Guardians have the same base statline as the other 2 variants of the Guardians, with the possibility of swapping out the squad Shuriken Catapults for the combo Pistol/CCW if you wanted them to have a little more punch in melee; if they do said swap, up to 2 of them can exchange their CCQ for power sword and up to other 2 can exchange the Pistol and the CCQ for a fusion gun or a flamer. If you do not swap their weapons, for every 10 Black Guardians you can take a Weapon Platform instead. Unfortunately this is where the good news end - they lack access to Warlock squad leaders (and thus Conceal/other useful blessings) and from a statistical viewpoint there is little to no difference from taking normal guardians. Their saving grace lies in their USR Webway Assault, which let's you keep them in reserve and deploy via Deep Strike without scattering (as long as they are placed more than 9" from enemy units).
  • Note: The Black Guardians might just be a good CQC tarpit when taken in Ulthwe Strike Force for to their cost - for 220 points you get a maxed out squad that can deal 60A on the charge. While S3 is nothing to write home about, they might just kill something (or die horribly and thus give you Soulburst). Sadly tarpitting is not the purpose of a Ynnari army: you want to close in, kill and get killed so that you may make use of Soulburst to wreck your enemy.
• Black Guardian Windriders ^FoBt: Same statline, special rules and weapons swap options as the normal Eldar jetbikes (with a few points of tax - 20 points per bike base), but they lack access to Warlock squad leaders like the Black Guardians. They have access to the Webway Assault special rule, making them a bit more mobile than their normal CE equivalent. An excellent unit in a Ynnari army in the same way that normal Windriders are, but you pay extra for the added deployment choice; all in all a very good pick, but maybe not the most competitive - in other words go nuts with them in a Ynnari army if you want to play friendly games, otherwise put them in the Ulthwe Strike Force and ally them in.
• Black Guardian Vypers ^FoBt: Like the Black Guardian Windriders, the Vypers are exactly the same as their normal CE equivalent, but got a 5pts/model increase due to the Webway Assault special rule. You can take up to 6 in a squadron (don't do it), but they still pale in comparison with the more competitive choices you can take in a Ynnari detachment/army.
• Black Guardian War Walkers ^FoBt: A normal CE War Walker with the added special rule Webway Assault and a bump in price up to 65-point-base; may be taken in sqaudron of up to 3 models, but you got no reason to do so. A decent unit on its own, they suffer from the same problem that the other Black Guardian units have - while they are decent choices, there is simply little-to-no reason to take them due to the presence of better units in the Ynnari roster.
• Howling Banshees ^CE: Aside from the fact that the daughters of Morai-Heg & Kaelis Vara'Lanthian are probably one of the fluffier units you can take in the army, Howling Banshees are your CQC specialized Aspect Warrior. They are specifically designed to counter MEQs in CQC with their native AP3 weaponry and the Banshee mask (item which confers the USR Fear and that shuts down Overwatch from the unit you are charging - note that you can still be overwatched by other enemy units if you are charging Tau for example); they are aided in their role by the special rule Acrobatics (3" extra when Running or Charging). In a Ynnari army they play much differently from how they are played in a CE army - whereas in a CE army their main purpose would be to destroy specific units and to screen your gunline, in a Ynnari force HB can truly shine due to Ynnari focus on close-range firefights and disregard for death (oh your opponent killed one of your units? That's cute - now 2 more units can charge his army/fire away in his turn), especially when you attach Jain to them for the bonus to Run actions/added CQC power. Howling Banshees might very well be one of the biggest psychological weapons you got as a Ynnari player, since the extra 3" on charge moves and the fact that they ignore Overwatch might very well make your opponent wary of killing units close to them, least the Banshees benefit from the free charge caused by Soulburst and attack him on his own turn. As always avoid bumping into terminators, also avoid charging into currently ongoing combat (combat that has yet to be resolved is just fine)
  • Note: you can Run when you get a SoulBurst action. That's basycally a 6-7" move, unless you take Jain Air, in which case that can be even transformed in 9-10 inches.
• Striking Scorpions ^CE: Coming with WS4 and BS4, the ability to Infiltrate (and gain Shrouded for the turn), a 3+ armour save, very threatening weaponry (+1S chainswords, plasma grenades and Mandiblasters - 50% chance of a savable auto-wound at Init 10 that hits automatically -) and a plethora of USR (Stealth, Infiltrate, Move Through Cover, Fleet), Striking Scorpions are a flexible unit perfectly capable of filling the harasser role in a Ynnari army. They come with 4 base attacks on the charge (2 base, +1 charge and mandiblaster hits) and native S4 thanks to their chainsword, making them a decent CQC unit to slow down enemies/destroy hordes. Note that even in a Ynnari army they continue to be unable to get through 2+ armor saves, so target prioritization is key to make the most of them; apart from this, go nuts with them - while they might not be the unit that benefits the most from Soulburst (given that they will often be deep in your opponent's deployment zone and thus far from other units), they remain a great unit to add to your army. They also don't always struggle with 2+ as much as you might think they would (particularly ones with invuln saves) because of wounding power, but it's up to luck whether they slaughter them or tickle them.
• Fire Dragons ^CE: A unit dedicated to deal with vehicles (adding +1 to all vehicle damage rolls), TEQ and buildings thanks to their weaponry, Fire Dragons are the natural choice if Wraithguard seems overkill to you due to their lower cost (while dealing pretty well with the same targets you would use your Wraithguard against). With their fusion guns (aka renamed melta-guns) and melta-bombs, they are your get-go unit for MC/GC too (though Wraithguard are better choice in this specific case) with a surprisingly good volume of fire for AP1. Falcon or Wave Serpent transports are near-obligatory to ensure their delivery (depending on the size of the squad). As previously said, Fire Dragons and Wraithguard are quite similar in the type of enemy units they counter; the basic question of which one to take depends primarily on what you normally play against (indicatively, Wraithguard for MC/GC and TEQ while Fire Dragons for Vehicles and Fortification). However, take note of the fact that a min Fire Dragons squad can fit in Falcons and can become BS5 thanks to the Aspect Host Formation (hint: always take them in the formation). In a Ynnari army they become even more rapetastic due to Soulburst - while their weapon range is low and you'll want them up close to the front lines anyway, Soulburst lets them unleash a second volley of destruction directly in the face of your enemy (first wreck their transport, then wreck the unit that just disembarked). Keep them close to your own units and they can become a potent countering tool - example, have them hover CQCs and they'll get a free shot if the enemy slays your unit. On a side-note, consider choosing a move action if you don't have any super big AV threats in front of you, even tho it might very well be useless since your fire dragons are very likely to die the turn after you make use of them.
  • Note: Kill a unit using Fire Dragons, Soulburst their transport (a Wave Serpent works better for its toughness) to deny LoS to your enemies; rinse and repeat.
• Wraithguard ^CE: Wraithguard in an Ynnari army have 3 main purposes: area denial, surgical strike, and giant distraction.
  • Area Denial: Simply place them in an area and start shooting enemies; they will clear the area after your first volley of D-strength guns/flamers - having said this, expect the Wraithguard to die the next shooting phase your enemy gets - not that this is a bad thing mind you, since an inexperienced player will use overkill vs them in fear they might survive, and a more experienced player will drown them in small-arms fire (thus wasting a turn of shooting for another unit). If you want them to stick around, either buy them a transport (that they can re-enter using Soulburst!) or attach a farseer/warlock to give them some cover (Conceal/Invisibility/etc).
  • Surgical Strike: Place them in a Ynnari Wave Serpent or with an Ynnari Archon with a webway portal. Deep Strike within range of two units. Wipe out the first one and proceed to wipe out the second one with the free Soulburst action from killing the first unit (and then proceed to die - either make sure to have a psyker with Invisibility attached to the unit, or an Archon with a Shadow Field on whom you have cast Fortune for that juicy 2++ re-rollable tank). Also works on popping a transport and then murdering the occupants.
  • Distraction: A unit of models with a semi-MC statline, armed with D-strength guns? Yup you will catch attention. If this is a good or bad thing...
    • Point About Raiders: Although the FAQ states that you still cannot start the game with Wraithguard inside of your Raiders you may still start them next to the Raider on turn one and have them hop in. Obviously shooting off the side of your Raiders will be advantageous for your Wraithguard but also destroying the Raiders will be troublesome for your opponent. If they "explodes result" your raider then they are in the clear but the odds are greater that they merely wreck it which means your Wraithguard may emergency disembark any direction and then continue to perform a soulburst. So placing your Raiders in the middle of your opponents forces instead of hiding them can have it's own tactical prowess.
    • Harlequin IC Buffs: Shadowseers and Death Jesters both have IC and the very useful Hit and Run. Even though Wraithguard with D-Scythes sound scary to assault into the truth is it's pretty easy to just send in a throw away unit first to soak up the wall of death and then proceed in with a strong melee unit to take them out or lock them up thus removing the D threat from the game. Now it has become quite easy to jam a Shadowseer into the squad and then leave the combat to then return fire on potentially two more units. This can also allow the Wraithguard who are devoid of Battle Focus to make 3D6 inch moves to line up more shots.
• Wraithblades ^CE: A CQC unit with T6, 3+ save and 4 attacks on the charge with the standard kitout (1 base + 1 for dual-wielding + 1 extra on the charge from Rage), with S5 AP3 built-in? Yup, what you charge will die..if you reach them. If you are worried about them getting mowed down before reaching the intended victim/target, arm them with the Axe and Forceshield for a slower but tougher unit (AP2 with a 4++? Oh boy!). Note that taking axes means you'll strike last, which might just come in handy for once given you can Soulburst to place them in a new combat and avoid the next shooting phase from your opponent. Now cheaper than Wraithguard by 10 pts.
  • You can and should stick a unit of 5 Wraithblades into a Wave Serpent. This will give the Wraithblades a way to get into combat relatively quickly, which at least a LITTLE protection. Just hope you get turn 1 so you can fly those babies into your opponent's face and watch him panic.
• Incubi ^DE: Coming stock with S4 (thanks to their CQW that gives them +1S) and striking at I5 with AP2, Incubi might very well be one of the best assault troops the Ynnari have. They are essentially a MEQ unit with their S4 and 3+ armor save, acting like an odd mix of Howling Banshees and Striking Scorpions in their role. In a Ynnari army they can really do well for themselves by using the Soulburst rule - high number of attacks (2 base, 3 on the charge) and AP2 at initiative goes very well with free movement and out of turn charges; having said this take note that they are still flimsy space elves after all - they lack assult or defensive grenades (thus making assaults through difficult terrain a no-go for them) and rely a lot on striking first since they cannot take very well punishment (T3, with only a 3+ save, in a meta dominated by AP3/AP2? Come on). All in all a decent MEQ unit for when you want to dance with other MEQ units in CQC where the Incubi can easily get the upper hand with their high I and low AP, but not great for much else. Unless of course you go all the way and include both Jain Zar and a Farseer rolling on Sanctic/Runes in a large Incubi unit, in which case you can just disregard what I just wrote and go toe-to-toe with dedicated CQC enemy units (and still have a very good chance at winning).
• Death jester ^H: BS5, Ld10 and W2 - in one word, a decent shot. The Death Jester comes with the USR Fear,Fleet, Furious Charge (and he has A3 natively, for 4 attacks on the charge + Furious Charge), Hit & Run, Independent Character and Precision Shots. All of these rules packaged together ensure that the Jester will not be stuck in melee unless it wants to be (let's be honest - S3, T3 and a measly 5++ save won't save him, even with the bonuses from charge/Furious Charge). Having said that the main reason to take the unit is its special rule Death Is Not Enough, which makes any unit which suffered casualties from the shrieker cannon take a Morale test at -2Ld; the kicker? If they fail the test, you get to make them fall back in whichever direction you want - examples? Got a CQC blender? Make the enemy fall back next to it; got the enemy unit close to the border? Make them go off the board! The Jester can take Enigmas of the Black Library and haywire grenades.
  • Note: For a measly ten points extra, Inriam's Spectre gains Shrouded. At that price, the included Haywire grenades are basically free. Attach him to a troupe or a Cast of Players and watch them somersault effortlessly through ruins while enjoying a 2++ cover save. Add a Farseer for a chance of rolling Fortune, or even a Jetseer to let the unit benefit from a rerollable 2++ Jink and beat the Ravenwing at its own game.
• Shadowseer ^H: A psyker lv.1 natively with the same USR as the Death Jester (Fear,Fleet, Furious Charge, Hit & Run, Independent Character plus Psyker) whose mastery can be upgraded to lvl.2 and that can take powers from Telephaty, Phantasmancy and Demonology Sanctic, the Shadowseer is a versatile unit that can cover many roles in a Ynnari army - it can form the core of a Freakshow Seer Council deathstar as well as using the Phantasmancy powers to buff/debuff units that it is attached to. The unit can take haywire grenades to deal with vehicles, and well as exchanging the pistol for a neurodisruptor (always do it). All in all one of the best units that came out of the Harlequins codex, usually saddled with taxes due to the harley formations, in a Reborn Warhost it can truly shine due to being able to take it in its proper FOC without the need to pay formation taxes.
  • Note: Within the Reborn Warhost, the Shadowseer is free from the Harlequin formation requirement and can now make use of his/her Independent Character rule. It is an amazing addition to a Seer Council deathstar, giving them the USR Hit and Run and Fearless from the Mask of Secrets. Moreover, if you stick a Succubus/Archon with Armour of Misery and a WWP you basically get a unit with a -4Ld aura able to DeepStrike without scatter wherever you need it. This can be played either as a debuff unit, or a proper DeathStar of the Freakshow flavor - if by Cegorach's grace you managed to roll Mirror of Minds on Phantasmancy (or more simply go for Psychic shriek from Telephaty), expect anything with Ld9 that doesn't manage to deny you to be destroyed within a very short time (Riptides? Greater Daemons? bye bye). Add to the mix some powers such as Ancestors' Grace or a Hemlock and anything that doesn't manage to DtW is ANNIHILATED. To combo, keep a Death Jester close to make them run off the board after they fail their Morale Check at the end of the shooting phase. Ow yea - and after their Wraithknight/Greater Daemon shatters from psychic powers you get Soulburst to make your warlocks hurl S9 spears at whatever hapless victim is nearby during the psychik phase. And after that continue with the psychic onslaught. Then throw more S9 spears in their own shooting phase.
• Solitaire ^H: The Solitarie is a very CQC oriented unit with its statline ofWS9, I10, A6, 3++, the special rule Eternal Warrior and the Kiss & Caress. Moreover, he can (once per game) make use of his special rule "Blitz", aka rolling a number of D6s equal to the turn number and moving that distance instead of his normal 12" (note that he moves over other models and terrainwhen he does this); the boost for doing this is that his attack value gets upped to 10 in the following assault phase (for a base 12 CQC attacks once you add +1 for the charge and +1 for the 2CCW bonus). Note that even with his 3++/EW, the unit is only T3 (and must always go solo) - in other words, keep him out of rage/LoS of small arms fire or he will be brought down in a very short time (from the Harlequins article, some mathammer - on average it will only take 6.75 bolter shots at BS4, 12 lasgun shots at BS3, or 7.2 pulse rifle shots at BS3 to knock off each of his wounds). All in all a very fragile unit that can actually be used, but that will require a bit of finesse to do so.
  • Note I: In a Ynnari army the Solitaire fragility is lessened since it can now become very tanky with the new Ynnari relics. Taken with a Cegorach’s Revenge formation (which grants Consummate Performance, allowing you to re-roll invun saves of 1) and the Lost Shroud relic (which gives Eternal Warrior, FNP and IWND), he becomes a nightmare to take down. Note that the Shroud usually fucks over character units since it removes the Independent Character rule, but this is totally ignored in this specific case since the Solitaire can’t join anybody anyway.
  • Note II - Alternative Opinion: The Lost Shroud costs 35pts, which is pretty hefty for the bonuses it gives (the Solitaire has Eternal Warrior anyway, on top of it being only T3, which means its FNP will be ignored by str 6). However, Corag Hai’s Locket (at less than half the Shroud price, 15pts) allows him to get stuck in and recover lost wounds after killing a model every fight sub-phase on a 4+. This is more statistically likely than IWND’s 5+ every controlling player's turn and could be a lot better than the Shroud in a high strength shooting meta.
  • Note III: The Mirrorgaze can also be a decent relic for the Solitaire, granting him Blind (very nice), Counter-attack (very nice) and Night-Vision (meh) for a rather expensive 30pts, making him even more of a reliable killing machine in combat.
  • Note IV: Make use of his BS9 by taking girst haywire grenades, and then swapping them (since according to the Rule Book grenades are a shooting attack and thus can be swapped) for the Song of Ynnead.

Fast Attack

• Wave Serpent ^CE: What the ubiquitous Rhino is for a SM player, the Wave Serpent is for a CE player, insofar as standard transport for your troops (and other units) is concerned. But the similarities end here - whereas the Rhino is a throwaway transport, the Wave Serpent is a much more reliable (and expensive) Tank that in previous editions caused untold rage to CE enemies. Coming with standard AV12, 3 HP, a reliable BS4 (compared with the basic Astra Militarum BS3 for the Russ tank we cannot complain) and a transport capacity of 12, the Wave Serpent is an excellent transport that will ensure your troops safety while at the same time damaging your opponent's army. As far as weaponry is concerned, the tank comes with a TL catapult and shuriken cannon (with the cannon being tradeable for a twin-linked starcannon, brightlance or scatter laser), the ability to get a EML (with flakk missiles) and the option to switch out the catapult for another shuriken cannon (extra 12" range? Take it.). Apart from the weaponry, the Wave Serpent equipment is great - you get the ability to buy vehicle upgrades (such as holofields and star engines, both excellent options) from the CE list, as well as the Serpent Shield (a magnificent piece of CE dickery, which transforms all pens done on the FA or the SA to glances on a D6 roll of a 2+, and that can be 'dissipated' to unleash a S6 2D6 cover-ignoring attack at 23" range - note that if you do so, you lose the aforementioned 2+ ability). All in all a very good (if expensive) transport for units that must survive to get back their points (cough Wraithguard cough), with the added bonus that it is able to dish out the pain on its own after delivering its cargo. As a general rule you will never take it in a FA slot, given you can take it as a Dedicated Transport; note that the Wave Serpent might be inferior to the Raider if you plan to play a FreakShow list that deals with Ld debuff/Ld based attacks.
  • Note I: If you are actually buying this expensive transport, make use of the Serpent Shield! Deliver the Wraithguard/other unit, fire and then either deny LoS to the unit, or simply make the unit itself retreat behind or even get back inside the Wave Serpent with Soulburst.
  • Note II: As far as weaponry goes, given the various options you get, consider starcannons or brightlances to deal with armor/TEQs, and the shuriken cannons to deal with infantry/transports.
  • Note III: The Wave serpent is pretty useless for a Ynnari army - the only situation where it might be recommended is when you take it as a Dedicated transport for a squad of Wraithguard. Having said this, if you prefer a much faster moving unit (at the cost of having as much AV as a wet cardbox), goes by itself that you should just deploy an empty Raider next to your Wraithgaurd unit, thus allowing them to board on the first turn.
  • Note IV: With the FAQ stating that exploded vehicles DO NOT trigger SoD, the far sturdier wave serpent with 2+ pen ignoring shield can give you a bit more reliability in that respect. Still can't charge out of your explosion and look cool though.
• Swooping Hawks ^CE: As if Swooping Hawks weren't already great enough. I can only imagine chain-killing two flyers due to their vector-striking haywire attacks. Move over a flyer, kill it via haywire, soulburst and move another 18" to do it again to another flyer.
  • Note: The most pressing question though is whether Intercept can be used during a Soulburst move, and if so whether Intercept can be used in any phase rather than just the Movement Phase (as currently stated in the RAW for Intercept). Depending on the answers to this, Swooping Hawks can get a lot of mileage from Soulburst. That said, even if Intercept is restricted in its usage, Hawks still remain an excellent unit to take advantage of and trigger Soulburst, especially if you take them with an Aspect Host: Herald of Victory gives them no-scatter Deep Strike that doesn't have the distance limitations of Webway Assault, while the anti-infantry firepower (don't forget the Skyburst and Plasma Grenade!) can easily whittle down or wipe out a weaker unit. Just remember to be careful versus AOEs since you don't have Battle Focus anymore.
• Warp Spiders ^CE: The Craftworlder have long loved the Warp Spider for it annoying flicker jumps and overall power. It is the true side grade for Ynnari. Losing Battle Focus for Move, shoot, move shenanigans does hurt but you get the possibility of Soulburst. Honestly a good unit and while the seasoned Craftworld player may need to adjust how they use them to get the most out of them they can be just as much of a terror as they always have been.
• Shining Spears ^CE: Shining Spears are more viable with Soulburst, if they manage to destroy vehicle or other unit on charge (which they should be able to) they can trigger Soul-turbo-burst 36" somewhere out of LoS instead of standing in the middle of the open ground being shot at by everything and their uncle, or being counter charged.
  • Being mounted on jetbikes, these are the fastest melee (well, competent melee) units you have. Move them 12" to within 7" of a soulburst fodder unit, shoot that to death with other stuff first and soulburst another 12" (save the 6" laser lance for your true target, you would'nt want to invalidate your charge now would you?). This can slingshot you over the enemy straight into their backline units like devestators, retributors and other assorted heavy weaponry. Throw on an Autarch with a Banshee mask, jetseer and never stop laughing.
• Crimson Hunters ^CE:The Crimson Hunter is an amazing air-denial unit since it has the fighter role which allows it to have skyfire (given its relative rarity in the post-DfTS meta, this fact alone makes the CH a worthwhile unit) on a turn-by-turn basis, thus allowing it to double as a decent air-to-ground support plane. Just remeber to bring them using the formation since it gives them a flat 4+ cover save without jink (or a re-rollable jink save).
  • Note 1: remember that fighter planes get -1BS when shooting at ground targets; if you plan to take a single CH to have air superiority (or to deny it to your opponent), always upgrade the CH to exarch for that sweet sweet +1BS (thus becoming BS5 vs air targets and BS4 vs ground targets)
  • Note 2: Remember that air targets are not just flyers and FMC, but also FGC, Skimmers, and Jetbikes - do not let that guy claim his jetbikes are ground targets.
• Vyper Squadron ^CE:
• Hemlock Wraithfighter ^CE: What is there not to love about a flyer that is Mastery lv.2, shoots 2 D-strength AP2 blasts per turn and forces enemy units to take Fear/Morale/Pinning tests at -2Ld? The Hemlock can now take powers from Telepathy, Demonology Sanctic, Runes of Battle and Revenant Powers. This has become the hate-machine it was always meant to be! Shriek an enemy unit, blast to death any survivor and then repeat the D-blast on another unit!
  • Note I - Powers: If you are using a Freakshow themed force, pick powers from Telephaty; otherwise I would advise to pick all from the Revenant discipline, just for their absurd killing power (even tho Shriek continues to be one of the best - if not the best - offensive powers of the game).
  • Note II: You think the Wraithknight is OP? Think again! I decided to become That Guy for an afternoon by bringing 3 maxed out Air Wings of Hemlocks in a Air Superiority Detachment in a 3000 points game - while the rest of the army pulled its punches, let me tell you that 18 D-strength AP2 blasts in the turn they arrived (afterward some had to jink to avoid death, and thus could not use the blast weapon) preceded by 6-7 Shrieks vaporized 1/3 of the enemy army in a single shooting phase.
  • Note III: Remember, the Hemlock is a vehicle, so it does NOT benefit from "Soulburst".
• Beastmasters ^DE:
  • Beastmaster ^DE:
  • Khymera ^DE:
  • Razorwing Flock ^DE:
  • Clawed Fiend ^DE:
• Raider ^DE: Before the FAQ this was amazingly stupid. Buy one, put your D-scythes in there and proceed to D everything was such bullshit that they nerfed it. Now if you want your D-scythes in here you'll have to deploy both next to each other and climb in. This is still an amazing unit for your army, but just keep that FAQ in mind when using it.
• Venom ^DE: Raider-lite. Fewer passengers and less option make this a cheaper but less valued unit. Still useful in certain situations but more limited than the Raider.
• Reavers ^DE: Switch-hitting Spiky Jetbikes. You've got Poison on your main weapons. One can upgrade to special. A good charge, but lacking in comparison to Windriders.
• Hellions ^DE:
• Razorwing Jetfighter ^DE:
• Scourges ^DE:
• Skyweavers ^H:
• Starweaver ^H:

Heavy Support

• Dark Reapers ^CE:
• Vault's Wrath Support Battery ^CE:
• Falcons ^CE:
• Fire Prisms ^CE:
• Night Spinners ^CE:
• War Walkers ^CE:
• Wraithlord ^CE: This poor sod is in a very awkward design space. Apart from grav weaponry, it is no small task to kill one of these due to the need to use anti tank or massed poison shots. Having said that grav does exist in droves. His other issue is that while being aggressively priced he is still less efficient than windriders in the dakka department, and giving him brightlances seems much less efficient than taking some of the vehicle options that are much more maneuverable. Having said that in a Reborn Warhost he can make slightly more sense because SfD is no respecter of vehicles and so his double activation potential can be the tie breaker.
• 'Ravager ^DE:Its a paper pirate ship very fast lots of dakka distie cannons are savage against armies like grey knights and dark lances are good anti-tank but they're not as efficient as other weapons in this army.
• Voidraven Bomber ^DE:
• Voidweaver ^H: Just don't... one of the obligatory tax units for Harlies, this detachment gives you the option to avoid it, do so! There are so many better choices available like the Fire Prism, Ravager or even a Venom.

Lord of War

• Yncarne, Avatar of Ynnead ^FoBt: Oh, fuck yes. Has an equally Greater Daemon-esque statline like the Avatar of Khaine (WS9, S/T6, I10). She has a 3+ Armor Save and a 5++ for being a Daemon, and she carries Villith-Zhar, an AP2 melee weapon with Fleshbane, Armorbane, and Soulblaze. Rules-wise, she has Eternal Warrior (which is a big step up from the Avatar of Khaine, sorry bud!), Strength From Death, Fleet, Deep Strike, and Preferred Enemy: Daemons of Slaanesh. She's also a Mastery Level 3 Psyker and can dip into either Sanctic Daemonology or Revenant psychic disciplines. She and all Ynnari units within 12" have the Fearless and Feel No Pain USR, and if an Aeldari model dies within 7" of her, she regains a lost wound on a 3+. She can easily take on any opponent in melee and have a near-guaranteed chance of coming out on top. Except the Avatar of Khaine, since his immunity to Soulblaze will mess her up in a mirror-match.
  • Inevitable Death: When a unit of any kind dies during either your or your opponent's turn, the Yncarne may be immediately picked up and placed as close as possible to that unit's position, provided that is at least 1" away from enemy units. Yes, this includes both arriving from Deep Strike Reserve and picking her up when she's already arrived, so it can be used zip out of a bad situation, or to Deep Strike safely on Turn 1 - note that she can in fact use this rule when locked in combat (moreover, if you use Inevitable Death during your opponent turn, you can then charge back in combat during your turn). Speaking of Deep Strike, the Yncarne must always be deployed in Deep Strike Reserve.
• Wraithknight ^CE: Everybody's favourite undercosted GC, now with even more OP-ness. Basic rundown of the guy: Jump GC (12' move/turn, re-roll charge and Hammer of Wrath at AP2 with Smash), FNP, resistance to Poison, Sniper (need 6s to wound in both cases) and remove from play/instant-death (it does D3 wounds instead). Now add on top of that Soulburst which allows you a free action and make sure to have your mug to drink those delicious tears from your opponent. Regarding the optimal loadout (refer to the CE tactics page at the top of this section for the details):
  • Heavy Wraithcannons: Using strength D to kill/smash open a transport to allow other units to make use of Soulburst is a very good tactic, but note that, differently from CE, this army focuses even more on synergy - if you were looking for pure firepower, even with strength D this configuration generates relatively little.
  • Ghostglaive & Scattershield: Jokingly called the rape-train configuration for the Wraithknight, it gets even better (for you, not your opponent) in an Ynnari army! Charge some poor sods and obliterate the unit, just before charging another unit and killing that, too...and allowing yet another one of your units to charge/fire/move again. While a CQC wraithknight is a damn good distraction in a normal Eldar army, it becomes a great synergistic unit in an Ynnari army, since it allows other units to make use of Soulburst after it charges and kills its target(s) - and do not doubt, it will kill its target. Because Soulburst's melee attacks are generated in normal Initiative order, Wraithknights can charge and kill a unit at initiative step 5, then use its soulburst trigger to charge another unit that is in difficult terrain, using its lack of assault grenades to its benefit by attacking again at initiative step 1. Then, of course, it can follow up with stomps.
  • Suncannon & Scattershield: 3 small blasts with 48" range at strength 6 AP2, and an invuln save slapped on top of it. Cast Guide on the knight, point at stuff and watch TEQ vanish, while your other units Soulbust into action.
  • Note: you can spam this bad boy if you really want - as said in the Detachment section, you only need around 90 points as tax for a new Reborn Warhost.

Formations

Reborn Warhost

An interesting combo of Combined Arms Detachment and Formations. You get your regular HQ and 2 Troops tax, but you may take any number of formations available to the Ynnari (yes the leaked table says "one of the following" but the restrictions say "any number"). This is considerably more cost effective than the Craftworld Warhost since you are not compelled to buy as many Guardian units. So once your taxes are filled, you can go directly to the formations and stack up on special rules from things like Aspect Hosts and Seer Councils and save your more traditional FOC slots for units you want to squeeze in that can't find a formation.

Everything in the detachment gets Stubborn and can ignore morale checks caused by model loss to shooting if they are within 7" of a friendly unit in this detachment.

Also, if the detachment includes 7 or more units (at the beginning of the battle, not necessarily during said battle), then two units may initiate a Soulburst rather than just one when a unit gets destroyed (note that both of them need to be within 7" of the destroyed unit anyway).

• Now the flip side: players who used to spam Wraithknights can no longer do so and remain "Battle-Forged" as the "Wraith Construct" option is not available to you. You only get one Lord of War slot on your FOC. You can still take one and the Yncarne though, since the Avatar of Ynnead can be taken as part of the Triumvirate formation.
  • Or can you? You can still fit 4 Wraithknights in an 1850 point match compared to the 5 Wraithknights possible in a Craftworld Warhost. You do have to keep your other choices quite barebones, using Courts of the Archon from the DE faction to fill some of the HQ choices frees up for more choices in the Troops department.
• Similarly, there are no tank formations so you have to take your Fire Prisms and Falcons out of your Heavy Support slots.
• Realistically, you shouldn't need to use the FOC to take aspect warriors ever, since you can always use the Aspect Host formation as part of your Reborn Warhost, taking them in groups of three and adding extra more special rules to the mix. You could say the same thing about Harlequins as you have unlimited access to their formations. What this leaves you with is the freedom to take Dark Eldar units in your FOC because the Kabalite Raiding Party sucks.
  • Don't shy away from bringing Harlequins in FOC slots though. We finally have a way to bring them without paying for Voidweavers! ABUSE IT!

Ynnari Formations

• Triumvirate of Ynnead: each of the new special characters. They each add +1 to their Herald/Champion/Avatar rolls when all three are on the tabletop, meaning the Yncarne can regenerate lost wounds on a 2+ when Aeldari units go down and the other two regenerate on 3+. The other bonus is that Ynnari within 12" of two of these characters gain the Fearless rule. (The Yncarne already has this though.). But if all three are on the tabletop then ALL friendly Ynnari become Fearless, so this is awesome.
  • Reminder note: this formation gets you the Yncarne without using your Lord of War slot in your Reborn Warhost detachment, your only other option is the Wraithknight.
  • In regards to the Fearless bubble: It appears, at least to this player, that the designers intended for the Visarch and Yvraine to stick close together and enter the board during first turn, granting a not-quite 12" Fearless Bubble (Due to units having to be in overlapping 12" bubbles from the Visarch and Yvraine to benefit.) The Yncarne would then Deep-Strike in upon either A: Via Inevitable Death upon a Unit being completely wiped, or B: Coming onto the board as reserves or Deep-Strike from turn 2 onwards. At which point the entire army gains fearless. Fluffy.
  • This can be a great formation, but keep in mind that you are spending 625 points on three models that are all pretty fragile. Sure, you can restore lost wounds, but like IWND, if you just get destroyed before you can use it, there's not much point. Make no mistake, these three are pretty squishy, being Eldar. For Apocalypse these might be great but for anything else they're a little pricey for what they can do.
• Aeldari Bladehost: 2 units of Wyches, 2 units of Troupes, and 2 units of Storm Guardians or Black Guardians.
  • If 2 units are fighting the same enemy in close combat, they gain Hatred. If 3 or more are in the same close combat they all get Preferred Enemy on top of that.
  • Furthermore, if no unit in the formation has Soulbursted yet this turn, the entire formation can Soulburst when any unit in it would Soulburst.
    • Storm Guardians are not a particularly strong close combat unit. Wyches are only slightly better and losing Power From Pain debatably makes them not even that. Meaning that this is essentially a 244 point tax on bringing 2 Troupes of Harlequins with Preferred Enemy.
      • Though if you really wanted to, you could max out both Units of Wyches with no upgrades, have them tie something up in combat with their 4++'s, granting Hatred whilst they're at it. The Storm Guardians could then either act in a similar capacity to less effect, or act as cover and ablative wounds for the Harlequins.
      • Nothing says the Black Guardians have to switch to melee, you can just have them keep their rifles and ignore melee.
• Soulbound Vanguard: 2 units of Dire Avengers, 1 unit of Incubi, 1 unit of Wyches. If the Visarch or Yvraine is in any squad of the formation, the squad but not the (named) characters get +1 BS & WS. If two units from the formation are within 7" of each other they get Furious Charge, which doesn't really help the Avengers but is good for the Incubi/Wyches. The best part of the formation is that its units can soulburst if within 14" instead of 7" of a destroyed unit. The doubling of range makes a huge difference as it will really allow these units to come to full effect much earlier.
  • Stick the Incubi with the Visarch for a frightening melee unit and let the Wyches act as ablative wounds for Yvraine. The Dire Avengers can then tail these two Units around providing fire support, Furious Charge and either benefitting from or granting Soulburst.
• Ynnead's Net: 1 Warlock Conclave (forced upgrade to skyrunners), 1 unit of Windriders, 1 unit of Reavers, 1 unit of Skyweavers. When a unit from the formation kills a unit, you gain an additional psychic die for your next psychic phase that the warlock conclave may use. All units from the formation have to start in reserve. Roll reserves for all units in formation as a single rerollable roll. When they come in, each unit comes in from a different table edge.
• Whispering Ghost Hall: 1 Farseer, 1 Spiritseer, 1 Shadowseer, 2 Wraithlords, 3 units of Wraithguard or Wraithblade (any combination). All units in the formation gain Fear. Non-character models re-roll to-hit rolls of 1 that target an enemy unit within 12 inches of a character from the formation (note: this does not specify shooting, so close combat is a green light as well). Enemy units locked in combat with any units from this formation suffer a -2 leadership roll when making Fear tests. The issues with the Whispering Ghost Hall are the same issues that "Fear" has. Too many of your opponents are Fearless/Atsknf/synapse/mob rule/stubborn etc. Making it so that any models your "Fear" works against are models you were already going to beat up in melee. Also many people feel the tax unit of the Wraith Host is the Wraithlord. Well this formation has two of them. So the real question becomes "Do I take this formation because of the re roll ones?". Obviously it depends but the Wraith Host may still be better in that regard and Wraithblades may push you closer to a yes than Wraithguard in this formation but without an assault vehicle that you may start the game in the whole thing feels disappointing.
  • Opinion the 2nd: In this formation, wraithlords turn into pseudo-spirit seers in guiding all the units, extending the reroll bubble and preventing its premature termination when a Vindicare BLAMS your spiritseer. The formation also allows you to take the 3 types of seers without crowding out your HQ and elite FOC slots. Fear is just a bonus against those who aren't immune to it that miiiight just allow your wraithguard to last long enough in the event they got caught in melee. Also, RAW, the Wave Serpent dedicated transport of the wraithguard/blades reroll 1s within 12" of characters (that only really helps the underslung shuriken cannon, but hey its something no)

Other Permitted Formations

• Guardian Battlehost - A Farseer takes 3 Guardian Defender squads, a squad of Vypers, War Walkers, and a Vaul’s Wrath support Battery with an optional Warlock Conclave. The Vypers, Warwalkers and Vaul’s Wrath get preferred enemy against an enemy within 12″ of the Defenders. Guardians can also purchase a Platform for free.
  • If you take this you've practically got yourself the core of an army. Which is unnecessary since your Reborn FOC has compulsory Troops choices instead of "Core formations" so you can save your points for something else. This might have been a good way to get War Walkers and Weapon Batteries in your army without using Heavy Support slots, but taking lots of Guardians in an Ynnari force is not strictly the best option as you want units that hit really hard; otherwise, they make good fodder to mark close to your unit and transfer souls for more power.
• Guardian Storm Host - Same as the Guardian Battlehost, but replacing the Guardian Defenders with Storm Guardians. The Storm Guardians can now take their weapons AND power weapons for free and the non-infantry units get their Preferred Enemy.
  • Suffers worse than the Battlehost because Storm Guardians using Soulburst is about effective as a one legged man in an arse kicking competition. Extra shots of pistols aren't going to do a whole lot, and getting a free charge with Guardians of any type will always pale in comparison to what dedicated Aspect Warriors could do.
• Windrider Host: A Farseer and a Warlock Conclave take bikes to join 3 gangs of Windriders and a Vyper Squadron. Once per game all models in this formation get Shred when firing shuriken weapons.
  • This formation actually has some bite. Heavier weapons and increased speed means that Soulburst actually makes jetbikes really agressive with a very long reach across the table.
• Seer Council: No need to waste those compulsory HQ slots on Farseers and Warlock Conclaves if you don't have to. Get them here and save your slots for things like Phoenix Lords and Succubi.
  • With no actual restriction on the amount you can take, after fulfilling your compulsory Troops choices on the FOC you could literally spam these as your whole army and still be Battle-Forged.
  • Give the Warlocks the new Revenant powers and let the Farseers use their traditional powers and you've got a support squad unlike any other, dishing out buffs to your army and deadly necromantic rape to the enemy.
  • This is the basis for a Deathstar. Take either the Skyrunners or Eldrad with everyone on foot. Other options may alter how you want to deploy your SeerStar
    • If you're taking the Triumvirate you're probably going to want to put the Visarch and Yvraine in this unit in which case the Jetbikes provide only +1T, Jink, and Hammer of Wrath. While you could break off your seer council to grab objectives, if you're playing a deathstar you're probably not playing heavily to the objectives in the first place. Ultimately, most of your durability will come from Powers and good positioning, and not from T4 warlocks with Jink. Now take an ML2 Shadowseer in the elite slot and toss her into this deathstar for the great harlequin powers and Hit and Run. Last but not least your HQ choices. An Autarch with Banshee Mask is a must for one slot while a Succubus or Archon with webway portal is the other slot. Archon is more tanky which is good for this unit but Succubus is more killy.
      • The largest weakness for this deathstar is a lack of ablative wounds. If you position things right your Archon can take a fair amount of punishment otherwise you either lose cast power in the form of your 1W Warlocks or something way more important. When grabbing powers Try everything to get Invisibility, as you might expect, as such your order should be as such; Eldrad should roll on telepathy attempting to get invisibility. If you fail to get it then roll telepathy on your other Farseer if Eldrad got invisiblity then roll on Revenant or Santic. Your first shadowseer should now roll on Phantasmancy looking for Dance of Shadows and potentially Mirror of Minds if your Archon/Succubus takes the Armor of misery and one of your shadowseers takes the Mask of Secrets. Dance of Shadows grants an effective +3 to your cover save which can provide enough extra durability in case you don't get off Invisibility. Now your second Shadowseer if you chose to bring two either more Phantasmancy, Revenant or Santic. Lastly your Warlocks should roll of either runes of Battle or Revenant. If you lose warlocks you don't want to lose something important. While rolling on sanctics you're looking mostly for Gate of infinity to handle your relative lack of mobility. Farseer is probably the best option thanks to ghosthelm.
• Aspect Host: This is where it's at. Ynnari are all about taking advantage of kills to sping into action once more via Soulburst. Aspect Warriors are rightly known for being very good at moving quickly up the board to cause havoc on the enemy army and kill units; giving them either +1 WS or BS is simply logical since it means you are ensuring you get the most out of them when the time comes.
• Dire Avenger Shrine: These Aspect Warriors are obviously better than Guardians, but are out of their league against MEQs when compared to Dragons, Reapers, and Banshees, who can really benefit from Soulburst. Lots of mid-ranged shuriken shots might easily clear out GEQs far better, but because you can instead take Avengers as part of the Soulbound Vanguard formation which brings in other units as well and extends the reach of Soulburst there isn't as much need to use this formation.
  • I respectfully disagree. I've tried this and I had some luck with it. The +1 BS is helpful, and the ability to up your shots to Assault 3 for the phase (meaning you can use it twice if you soulburst in that same phase, shouldn't be hard) isn't bad at all. Getting them up close to soulburst isn't hard if you bring Wave Serpents (sadly cannot use Raiders due to the new FAQ).
• Crimson Death: If you bring this formation - congrats, you own the air. More objectively, this formation gives the Crimson Hunter (an amazing unit on its own to start with) Preferred Enemy against other flyers/flying MC and a flat 4+ cover save in the open without jinking (if you DO jink, you get a re-rollable 4+ for that delicious 75% chanche of saving the wound...mind you, this is necessary given you are only AV 10 which means strength 4 can glance you to death). This might very well be the best way to bring air support for the Ynnari.
  • Note that the formation is from the pre-DFtS period and it specifies 3 CHs, not 3 CHs units - aka no sweet flying pattern bonuses for this formation.
• Wraith Host: The Wraith host is as nasty as ever, though due to the fact the new FAQ denies its main benefit (to give Battle Focus to your Ynnari Wraithguard) it becomes much less appealing. In any way, since the Wraith Host can be taken as part of a Reborn Warhost, this is a great way to cram three squads of Wraithguard into Wave Serpents (a nasty unit on its own) and cram your proverbial fist down your opponent's throat.
• Kabalite Raiding Party: An Archon, a court of the Archon, 6 Units of Kabalite Warriors that can be made Trueborn, 1 unit of Incubi, 1 unit of Scourges, 1 unit of Hellions, a Ravager and everything except the Archon had to take a Venom or Raider as Dedicated Transport. No. Just no. Expensive and inneffective. Hellions and Ravagers do not belong here, the Scourges are good, but Incubi can get better buffs and less tax with Ynnari Formations, the Court is flat out unnecessary, the Archon may be functional and the potential for six Blaster/Splinter Born Venoms flying around sounds fun until you realise this is more than two thirds of an 1850 point list that gives you one close combat unit, one anti vehicle unit, 2 HQ's, six Venoms and Hellions.
• Cegorach's Revenge: Three Troupes, three Shadowseers, three Deathjesters, 1 Solitaire, two Skyweaver squads, one Voidweaver. This grants the ability to reroll failed invulnerable saves of a 1, allows Running and Charging consecutively from Turn 2 onwards, and lets one of the Troupe Masters reroll their Warlord Trait from the Harlequins tables if they are the Warlord. This can function either as the core of an army or an entire army depending on upgrades. The formation is expensive, so only really viable in large games if you want a cadre of Close Combat Beasts and moderate Psychic support.
• The Serpent's Brood: Three Troupes take Starweavers as dedicated Transports, two groups of Skyweavers join in on the fun and a Voidweaver hangs awkwardly in the background. The unique trick you get for this is the ability to re-embark the Starweavers off of a Hit and Run movement. If done correctly this can result in the Troupe leaping from the Starweaver, shooting whilst the Starweaver finds a hiding spot. Then charging the enemy, holding them in Combat right through to their assault phase where the Troupe Hits and Runs, embarking in the transport during the opponents turn before flying off and repeating the process on some other poor sod.
  • More likely though: everything goes perfectly up until your oponents shooting phase at which ooint the Starweaver explodes due to a light gust of wind and it's nature as an AV10 vehicle.
• Cast of Players: A Troupe takes a Shadowseer and Deathjester hostage. As such they cant' split up and effectively lose Independent Character until their Captos die. As a bonus, the unit gets Crusader and give non-Harlequin Aeldari models within 6" Crusader as well. Neat.
• Cegorach's Jest: A Troupe, a unit of Skyweavers and the dreaded Voidweaver tax. Everyone worthwhile can Run and Charge consecutively from Turn 2 onwards.
• The Heroes’ Path: A Shadowseer and Deathjester decide to support a Solitaire by being loners together. Models in this formation may not join, or be joined by, other units. In return for this descent into solitude, the three models gain Infiltrate, Shrouded and Stealth for a 3+ cover save in the open. Haywire Grenades on everyone won't hurt. You'll have a fun time if you give the Solitaire the Lost Shroud relic, welcome to uber-stealthy-tank mode. The Shadowseer could take the Mask of Secrets and jump on the Psychic Shriek Train for fun, or take no relics and make glorious use of the new Revenant Discipline.
• Faolchú's Blade: 2 units of Skyweavers and a Voidweaver. The entire formation may re-roll jink-saves.

Synergies and Tactics

Haemonculus Coven

• The Covens can work really well alongside a Reborn Warhost mostly due to formations and the freakish spectacle rule. All the formations have it and they can provide some additional -Ld aura to cause your enemies to flee. Typically you want something ship and durable to provide that bonus. However you should keep your Covens and Yannari separate to get as much Soulburst from your Ynnari as possible.

Formations

• Grotesquerie - A Haem/Urien joins 2 Grotesque squads.
  • A cheap team that gives a new variant of Combat Drugs. Now the hulks get either: +1S, +1T, Fleet, Shred, Rage, 4+ FNP. All of them have their days, but that FNP and Fleet sound DELICIOUS.
  • Excellent for Yannari Allies. You have a tough pair of units that have some reasonable mobility.
• Scarlet Epicureans - Haemy, Cronos, and 2 Wrack squads all teamed up.
  • A shocking unit, this gives all Wracks within 12" of the Haem Precision Strike AND +1 on PFP (Before factoring the Master of Pain, so attaching gives you IWND by Turn 2), meaning immediate Fearless. In addition, if the Haemy is Warlord, then he automatically gets the WT giving suicidal victory lols. Pretty clear what you're supposed to be doing with everything.
  • Not the greatest for Yannari allys being more expensive and less durable than other options.
• Scalpel Squadron - 2 Wrack Squads in Venoms. Wait, that sounds way too easy...
  • Its simplicity belies its goal as alpha strikers. If they win First Blood, they win d3 VP. The issue is that they DS on turn 1, meaning that they need to make sure that the thing they kill is not going to take too long to steal the kill.
    • "Alpha strikers" doesn't quite cover it. Because these automatically arrive at the beginning of your first turn, it's entirely possible to leave the rest of your army in reserve and give the opponent the first turn, thereby forcing them to waste a turn shooting at precisely jack shit.
    • This is basically the DE version of Drop Pod Assault, except you aren't forced to hold half of them back for a full turn in exchange for no deepstrike insurance.
    • This isn't the worst but also isn't great for Ynnari. It has some good potential with a Yncarne to get it out quickly but You aren't likely to get much in the way of soulburst from a turn 1 alpha strike with a Ynnari army.
• Corpsethief Claw - 5 Talos in a single squad.
  • One of the bonuses is that they get Scout. 6" of additional movement after deployment helps alleviate their mediocre mobility. The other bonus is that for every non-vehicle unit they destroy in Assault they gain a VP. So, what do we get? A Dark Eldar deathstar. 15 T7 3+ wounds with FnP and the ability to redeploy that advance toward the enemy like a giant wall of fleshy doom. With 5 TL Haywire Blasters (fairly expensive but recommended upgrade) they own Vehicles (particularly transports) and rip and tear everyone who gets in their way with S7 AP2 attacks at WS5 and Init 4. Have to fight a Walker? TL Haywire Overwatch and 5 S10 AP2 attacks with re-rolls to pen. The only things that the Corpsethief Claw is vulnerable to is massed Poison fire (so, other DE), Grav-guns and Instant Death. Other than that, feel free to advance across the board and wipe the enemy out.
  • This isn't great for a Yannari Ally. You have better Deathstar options in your warhost.
• Dark Artisan - Haemonculus makes a unit with a Talos and Cronos.
  • Yeah, they become a unit the Haem can't ever ditch. However, doing this gives the engines +1 WS/I. If he's Warlord, he also gains the FNP re-rolls OF 1, which becomes useful for the retinue. Give the Cronos the Soul Probe and the Haemonculus the Nightmare Doll, stick the Haemonculus up front and watch him eat all those hits at T7, then take his saves at 3+ Feel No Pain. Oh someone fired a lascannon at it? Look Out Sir, clownbucket!
  • Tired of slogging across the board? That Haemonculus can still take a Webway Portal for some precision deep striking hilarity...
  • I good choice for Yannari Ally. Durable enough to provide that -Ld bubble without needing to worry too much about being shot at. And a reasonable price.
• Covenite Fleshcorps - Haem joins 3 Wracks with Raiders, but doesn't NEED to join a Raider.
  • A basic formation that has a main goal of protecting the Wrack with the Haem's PFP boost spreading to all members within 12". This also gives him and the Wracks he joins the 4+ FNP WT if he is Warlord, which is a good bonus.
  • Nope. It's too much for an allied formation. If you like the idea the Scalpel Squadron does everything and more this formation does at a lower price.
• Carnival of Pain - Every formation in the book slapped together. All of them.
  • Aside from everything coming at once, Urien (or his Formation's replacement) spreads his PFP boost to the ENTIRE FORMATION. Everyone out of a vehicle also gets to re-roll 1's to-wound in combat.
  • Just no. This is an army in itself.

Composition and tactics

It is very hard for you to mess up with the variety you have on hand here. Just as the note at the beginning says, don't overdo the cheese for anything less than ultracompetitves tourneys. You will probably need to pull your punches more often than desperately humping objectives for the win

That being said, same advice as whatever codex you're from, you are still squishy elves who dislike high strength, high volume, cover ignoring fire. Never leave your anti tank at home, they come best in the form of haywire and lance, distinguishing yourselves as the superior race rather than relying on high strength and volume of fire(that being said, you are not lacking in that department either)

How you choose to play the reborn Eldar race is really up to you, whether you just want to tack on some choppa, dakka or be a special snowflake with your usual army. Or you can go all out on the fluff and making your guys work together better than the rotting Imperium. For example, Dark Reapers providing Incubi with covering fire while Death jesters pull the enemy in (edgelords gotta stick together).

Bring out all your shelf decorators and see what you can make of them. Be creative and have a laugh as your hodgepodge army goes ham and moves models back to deployment table as quick as you and your opponent can deploy them.

Strength from Death

"No captain can do very wrong if he places his ship alongside that of the enemy" -Admiral of Albion in the 1st Millenium

This is your special sauce, death and destruction is your meat and wine. The term overkill doesn't apply to your army; oops I wasted my wraithknight's 2 D strength shots on a rhino. Oh well, I'll just shoot that land raider across the board and charge the occupants of the rhino at its feet. On the contrary, you never want to half ass something, leaving bits and pieces behind, SoD untriggered, and you with a rather severe case of blue balls.

Now, to get this thinggamajig going, you need to be close to the enemy. That means you have to abandon your usual pansy tactics of staying out of charge range. So melee becomes a very real, very necessary part of your life. Well done GW.

SoD actions

Movement

Shooting

Assault

I would argue that this rule itself is a counter to MSU style gameplay, like many Gladius detachments that have min squad of tacs and rhinos and drop pods and annoying little things. Where previously they would feed you a unit or 2 at a time to roadblock you, now your deathstars have the ability to ride the rape train near endlessly. Still, your deathstars will never be excessively durable without massive psychic support, which can be a finnicky thing what with rolling powers, DtW and perils. Oh wait this codex has a warlord trait that lets your choose your powers. Oh wait your farseers can negate peril wounds with 1 wc. Oh wait you can drown your enemy in warp charges and cast on 3+ with seer councils. Hmmm. The psychic phase, if you get enough killy powers can get the deathstar rolling early, or at least soften them up for the first shooting phase.

Ulthwe Strike Force Detachment

You may take 1-4 units from the Black Guardian selection. They gain Stubborn and Preferred Enemy if the opposing any contains any Chaos Daemons, Chaos Space Marines, Khorne Daemonkin or Renegade Knights.

Note that Black Guardian units are not available to normal Craftworld Eldar armies. So other than the Ynnari Reborn detachment this is the only way to take them. But if you take them this way, they aren't actually Ynnari and so still have Ancient Doom and Battle Focus instead of Strength from Death.

• Whether they belong in a Strike Force or a Reborn Warhost depends entirely on what you intend to do with them. The Strike Force offers some nifty benefits against Chaos, doesn't take up slots in another detachment, and has the potential to unleash a nasty deep strike assault on Turn 1. If you don't need Soulburst for your Black Guardian units and have enough to fill the four slots, this is the way to go. That said, Windriders and Guardians will benefit from Soulburst if they join a Reborn Warhost and they'll still be able to deep strike starting on Turn 2. If you want to deep-strike huge Guardian mobs in hopes of triggering a Soulburst-powered double volley, keep them in the Reborn Warhost. The same can be said for large squads of Scatter Laser bikes, which stand a solid chance of getting a Soulburst double kill on some light vehicles before boosting to cover in the Assault Phase.