Editing Warhammer Army Project/Dark Elves (section)

===Lords & Heroes===
====Named Characters====
* '''[[Malekith]], the Witch King:''' No longer lives with his mom. It's good to be the King. Malekith costs 505 points vanilla (which is obviously meant to JUST keep him out of games under 2000. What a tease!), but you get your money's worth for him. He's a Dreadlord with higher WS, S, and T. He's also a level 4 Dark Magic Wizard with Hekarti's Blessing, magic full plate that gives a 2++ Ward against mundane attacks and makes him immune to Multiple Wounds and Killing Blow. This magic weapon lets him break enemy magic items (allowing him to get rid of those pesky magic weapons that can harm him). This glove gives an extra S6 attack that bypasses armour. This shield gives him Magic Resistance (2) and causes spells aimed at him that are dispelled to rebound on the caster unit for D6 S6 hits, a crown that gives him an extra Power and Dispel die per Phase, and his Inspiring Presence is 18" instead of 12" (24" on his Black Dragon). And he still has the old perma-Hatred, comes with Immune to Psychology, and lets Black Guard become special choices. Inhale. He costs a bucket-load but can easily turn entire games around. His mount options include Cold One (mediocre), a Cold One Chariot with a 2+ save (quite good for smaller points games, though you'll mis that other body), and Seraphon the Black Dragon. The combination of killer stats, great special rules, and magic items, and being a powerful caster in his own right make him more than worth his rather expensive entry cost in a casual game. Do note that against magical weapons he has no Ward save. At all. This won't usually come into play in close combat, thanks to Destroyer, but against ranged magics that aren't dispelled (Irresistible Force comes to mind) or against Dwarfs with too many magical cannons, he can find himself getting pretty fucked up.

* '''[[Morathi]], the Hag Sorceress:''' Morathi is a little schizo about her role. Her abilities and stat increases seem to indicate that she's intended for combat, which is the exact opposite place from where you want her.  She's more expensive than an upgraded Supreme Sorceress but much better than a generic Supreme Sorceress on Dark Pegasus (regardless of the fact that she's over 100 points more), considering that she can get spells from a mix of Dark Magic, Shadow, and Death lores like Alarielle and be a damage powerhouse. New to this edition is the ability to always count as General when using Khainite units.  Her Enchanting Beauty rule is decent. Morathi has the mobility and ability to abuse it (usually getting +7 to cast any spell with it), and she's a bit costly for all her goodies at 375 points before buying her pegasus.  

* '''[[Malus Darkblade]]:''' You've read his books, now put him on the tabletop. With his cost dropped to 215 points before grabbing Spite, and still well under 300 after, his usability has gone up. Has a couple nifty abilities. Using Tz'arkan makes him more powerful, but no one can use hit Ld and makes him attack his own unit on hit rolls of one. Spite is still the best Cold One mount in Warhammer Fantasy with no stupidity for him or his unit. Should be seriously considered for any Cold One heavy army. 

* '''[[Crone Hellebron]]:''' Hellebron is a fundamentally ideal combat Lord (or rather Lady), the epitome of the Death Hags. Okay, she costs ~155ish Skaven Slaves and comes with little protection (ie she has no saves unless mounted). But she has Initiative 9, 4 Attacks base, combined with Paired Weapons (+1 Attack) Witches Brew (gives her and her unit +2 Attacks) and Cry of War (+D3 Attacks) for anywhere from 8 to 10 Strength 10 Attacks combined with Murderous Prowess which equates to her being essentially guaranteed to wipe out an entire rank. Any hit against her rolling a 1 causes an Strength 4 hit on her attacker. Oh and she and any unit she's with gets +4 to Dispel rolls for any spells cast at them. Yeah. She can also take a Cauldron of Blood. Put her in a unit of Witch Elves (whom she makes Core now) or Sisters of Slaughter. If you take her, keep her in a unit: she is the prime example of a glass cannon.

*'''[[Rakarth the Beastlord]] of Clar Karond:''' He's basically an improvement on all Beastmasters and gets to ride a black dragon on top of this. He lets all monsters benefit from Hold Your Ground, which is actually quite surprising since that lets his monsters keep standing. He's also a bit of an interesting choice, as he has a 1+ armour save and has a weapon with S+1 that gives a bonus ASF attack that, if successful at wounding but not killing a model, forces them to only hit him on 6s.

* '''[[Shadowblade]]:''' Almost double what a properly kitted out Assassin would cost. Took a hit since he can no longer hide among the enemy. Even if you get him to reveal himself when he needs to, where he needs to, if he gets killed he could just as easily damage your own unit, which keeps him from being set up like a regular Assassin - though having the kamikaze option exists, it's only S3 on a small blast. Does come with all 3 poisons so has killing blow, +1 to wound and gives -1 to enemy leadership per wound caused but unless you're after a fluffy army, you're much better off with a generic Assassin (or two).

* '''[[Tullaris Dreadbringer]]:''' Now a Hero. Costs a little over double of a regular Master and loses his Frenzy for an ability to add to Combat Resolution for each Killing Blow (which triggers at 5+) made. This guy in an Executioner unit makes Sword Masters wish they were this awesome, so take him if you're going heavy on Executioners.

* '''[[Kouran Blackhand]]:''' Like Tullaris he is now a Hero. Just shy of 200 points for a Master statline, but with WS9! His Crimson Death no longer always strikes at S6 but gives +2 strength (so you're free to buff his strength beyond S6, not that you need to). His armour now only activates when he's hit, but does slap his attacker at S5 (though given how he only has 2 Wounds it isn't likely to cause that much damage, since if they hit they're likely to Wound his T3). Stick him in Black Guard they become UNBREAKABLE. However, he's overcosted so stick with regular Masters.  Black Guard are likely to stay with Ld9 and Stubborn, more so if they're within the General's Ld10 or given the Standard of Discipline to make them Ld10. If there's also a BSB in range then the chances of them breaking are so low that it's not even worth worrying about.

* '''[[Lokhir Fellheart]]:''' An effective enough combat Hero, if a bit on the pricey side. He can no longer get an absurd number of attacks and the extra hundred points for no stat upgrades means he's limited. Also with his new rules he can attack any character in the same combat without moving to them. So can more easily hide from the nastier Lords while still attacking them. A Master is probably better though he can do incredibly with a big corsair unit and Shadow Magic buffs (but for his cost you could just get more Masters who will do the same job better, or get a Dreadlord who can do the same job but also better).  Like a Fleetmaster he can make a unit he joins Unbreakable but only if he's in a challenge or kills a character, which is what he's suited for with Hatred of High Elves and re-rolling failed wound on the offense, with a 2+ armour save, 4+ regeneration and terror on the defense.

====Generic Characters====
While named characters are judged against their generic counterparts, generic characters are examined based on their role in your army.

*'''[[Dreadlord]]:''' Your workaday combat Lord. He's cheap and effective and can be highly nasty when given the right equipment.  There are many equipment options that will be covered in the equipment section. Better than the High Elf equivalent in close combat, re-rolling Wounding rolls of 1.  Overall, he's cheap with some good stats (WS7 and I8 is nothing to sneer at) and he can be quite effective in the right circumstances. Just don't put him in fights he can't win.

*'''Supreme Sorceress/Sorceress:''' Supreme Sorceresses (and Sorceresses for that matter) excel at one thing: blasting the almighty crap out of everything. You can fling absurd amounts of dice around if you're unafraid of Miscasts and have access to some impressively destructive Lores. The Dark Elves signature Lore consists of almost nothing but ways to blast the shit out of people. Aside from that, Sorceresses can now use all most of the battle lores (excepting Life and Light, two lores the High Elves support in spades with their [[Everqueen]]).  To keep in the spirit of the fluff, Death is good for some targeted Hero killing and Shadow can home unit Synergy if you're willing to throw a lot of dice at it. Bringing a Level 4 Supreme Sorceress will almost always pay off.  In closing, a very versatile offensive caster and just as good a choice for General as the Dreadlord, though with different uses.  

*'''[[Black Ark Fleetmaster]]:''' He's a Pirate Duelist Hero with a sword for a leg. Needless to say a kick to the crotch from this guy is to be avoided at all costs. Seriously though, he is a lightly armored Master. He gives his Corsairs a re-roll on 1s to hit while challenges let him re-roll his hits and double the wounds dealt for Combat Resolution. 

*'''Master:''' Masters are among the best cost for ability Heroes in the game. For 60 points, plus an extra 6 for the Sea Dragon Cloak, Heavy Armor and Shield, you'll get a guy with M5, WS/BS6, S4, T3, W2, I7, A3, LD9 and a 3+ (1+ vs shooting) armor save, plus Elven Grace and Murderous Prowess. A Master is a great choice to add some oomph to a unit. Also super viable to Cowboy, For cheaper than a unit of Dark Riders or Cold One Knights. 

*'''[[Death Hag|Hag Queen/Death Hag]]:''' More built-in killy on an Elf but costs a little more than a base Dreadlord/Master, getting 2 hand weapons, Frenzy, Poisoned Attacks aaaand...the loss of any kind of saves beyond Wards as well as the ability to join your better-protected units. Not batting 1000 here. In addition to magical Items, they also have a separate Gifts of Khaine allowance, letting them double up on killing power.

*'''Assassin:''' When kitted outright, Assassins can end the life of any Hero and some Lords. It has frankly ABSURD WS and I mean that. It can put the whammy on anyone dumb enough to get into close combat with it. And here's the kicker: because of the Hidden rule, people won't know if they're getting into combat with it until it's too late. Very good in either your ranked units (to help them hold up when a powerful unit tries to use them) or in your flank units (to up your kill count when you charge).  An example of a good Assassin is additional hand weapon and Potion of Strength. Other combinations will be discussed later.  Assassins often end up on suicide detail after a round of combat or two, so don't throw too many points into them. Oh and don't forget to write down what unit it's in, or people will accuse you of cheating. When you can spare the points, always take one.

* '''High Gladiatrix:'''

* '''Melusai Ironscale:'''

*'''[[Beastmaster]]:''' Demoted to Hero, and thus made tremendously cheaper. With one less A and I, light armor, cloak and spear, but lets one Beast per turn within 6" gain +D3 attacks and can take a Manticore or a Scourgerunner Chariot. This Manticore with +2D3 attacks (get Blind Rage) can definitely help him earn his points back, even against the enemies elites as 8 (or 9 if he gets Frenzy) S5 attacks + Stomp + Killing Blow is nothing to sneer at, and that's all before the Beastmaster attacks!

*'''Disciple of Khaine:''' Warrior Priests, being a consistent thing with many of the armies, are also found among the Dark Elves. These guys are on par with Beastmasters, but each knows three different PL4 bound spells and add +1 to the casting roll (Max +3) for each unsaved wound you make. All of these prayers are cast upon himself and his Khainite team. Witches and Melusai will love them.
**'''Restore Essence:''' Gain a 5+ Regen.
**'''Fist of Khaine:''' Re-roll all hit and wound rolls in cc. This is a dream of witches.
**'''Rend Soul:''' One unit in b2b takes d6 S3 hits and lose -1S for the turn. If you need to even the playing field a bit, you can cast this, or you can use it to bully a sad unit of swordsmen.

====Mounts====
*'''Dark Steed:''' The cheapest option. M9 and Fast Cavalry will put him away from the rest of the army, except for Dark Riders and Doomfire Warlocks, but why would you want a character to join them? Because you're awesome and gave him a Ring of Hotek and a posse of 14 other Dark Riders or 5 Doomfire Warlocks. 

*'''[[Cold One]]:''' The traditional mount of a Master/Dreadlord and with good reason. M7 is quite reasonable, Stupidity is unlikely to cause problems at LD9 and S4 and a default 6+ Natural Armour Save with the option for free barding is always nice. If you want a mounted Hero without shelling out for a big expensive mount, this is where to go.

*'''Cold One Chariot:''' extra durable for your character with more attack, having T5, Sv 2+, but slower to M6".

*'''[[Scourgerunner Chariot]]:''' let you Beastmaster keep up with your mounted Manticore or Dragon so they get more attacks. It also includes a harpoon gun.

*'''[[Cauldron of Blood]]:''' makes naked Hags durable with T6 and 4++ ward, inaction to bosting the killing and not dieing of your units.

*'''[[Dark Pegasus]]:''' Pegasi used to be in kind of a weird position, but they're significantly better since the rider inherits the Pegasus' toughness and their Impact Hits are a little better. You NEED to make sure your rider has a good Armor Save and probably a consistent Ward too, or it'll get to shot to death (so don't give it to Sorceresses).

*'''[[Manticore]]:''' Don't have the points for a Black Dragon but want something big and scary? Then come on down to <s>Clar Karond's</s> KAROND KAR'S Manticore Emporium. The in-between option and a damned good one at that. If you want people to cry cheese, try mounting your Master on one of these. Can now be given a 4+ scaly skin save and can be upgraded with a Blind fury rule: it gains +D3 attacks each combat phase but enemies get +1 To Hit (worth it).
  
*'''[[Black Dragon]]:''' The Dark Elves best mount, a middle tier Dragon (better than Sun Dragons and Manticores but not as good as Star Dragons and Greater Daemons) whose effectiveness is often linked to how good the rider is. A powerful mount, perhaps a tiny bit overpriced, but worthwhile. We will cover what items to take and not to take later, but remember that your Dragon is huge and scary so it will be getting shot at by everyone who doesn't want to see it crashing into their lines. Keep it out of sight of cannons.