Editing Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Kill Team(8E) Xenos (section)

===HAR Strategies===
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'''HAR Strategies:'''
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Harlequins are one of the three Eldar lists for Kill Team. Out of the three of them, the Harlequins have the most direct and straightforward game style. They are fast and good in melee, so to melee they'll go. They'll cross any obstacle, any cover and any height to get there, and once they're there, overwhelm the opponent with a flurry of attacks. After the enemy is reduced to bits, they could run away to regroup or consolidate against the next target. However, the harlequins have to deal with the WORST UNIT VARIETY IN THE GAME. Seriously. With the player as the single unit for leader, specialism and regulars, the clowns will be pretty much bracketed into one single playstyle and that's it. At least the Grey Knights got more stuff in Elites, at least the Custodes are strong enough to just ignore their lack of unit variety. The clowns cannot do that, and as such, we need to make a really detailed analysis on their single unit.

The player is a strong and agile unit. At 8" per turn, it's one of the fastest basic units in the game. Combine that with the flip belt that allows you to ignore all obstacles and heights (and I mean ALL obstacles and heights, for the followers of the Laughing God everything is a straight line, which is amazing to take advantage of cover spots most teams can only dream of) and jump over enemy units with impunity, and you are pretty much the fastest team to close the distance between your guys and the enemy. And it gets better. The Rising Crescendo allows you to roll 3D6 instead of 2D6 for the model when making a charge roll, which means you can charge units that are at a maximum of 18". That is just ridiculously good against units designed to counter charges. Flames won't ever be able to counter them in overwatch, and with such a strike range, no unit is really safe from a charge from a blind spot. This is even better when you realize 3D6 makes regular 12" almost a guaranteed deal. Once in melee, their general A4 will really scare whatever they are charging against. Combine that with the zealot or the combat specialism to take that to ridiculous levels. You want better? Use the War Dancers tactic to repeat an attack with a unit at the end of the Fighting phase. If you didn't kill that pesky enemy before, you surely can do it now. With that said, their general S3 is not that great, but they usually compensate their mediocre strength with their melee arsenal. BS3+ and WS3+ means that in close combat they are very reliable to hit their targets, but because they don't have access to a single gun that isn't a pistol, their shooting range is limited to 12" at best. Any team will outrange them, even orks. Once they have to defend themselves, their mediocre T3 and W1 make them a glass cannon, until you look at their invulnerable saves. General 4++ is an amazing save, and will always be used over their natural save (and it can be improved with the Prismatic Blur to a 3+, though it's for advance only). This gives all attacks thrown against them a 50/50 chance of getting in, amazing to deal with single shot heavy weapons like meltas or transuranic Arquebuses. All that stopping power and it dissipates at the flip of a coin. However, this shows one of the big weaknesses of the harlequins: while they can deal damage in melee, they can't take it back. And considering a 100p team will usually have around 5-6 units, each death counts. 

The melee weapons available for the players are there to take advantage of the massive amount of attacks the harlequins can do each turn:
*The Harlequin's Blade is the standard and the one you get for free. Not a particularly good weapon considering it depends on the user's strength and has no AP, but hey, it's free. Maybe you could fit another player with this if you have extra points. Otherwise pick something else. 
*The Harlequin's Caress is S+2 AP-2, which is really good. This will hurt a lot tougher units like marines.
*The Harlequin's Embrace is S+1 AP-3, which is, again, really decent. 
*The Harlequin's Kiss is there if you like to take risks. Really, S+1 and AP-1 while costing more points that all of the above might sound silly until you realize it's D3 damage. And with the amount of attacks a harlequin can throw at a unit, something is bound to get in. This means that it will do massive damage against units with multiple wounds, but otherwise it's better to rely on the other, safer weapons. 

Now, the strategy with this is simple. The guy with the Harlequin's Kiss is there to try and kill the leader and/or commander (or any other multiple wound unit) while the harlequin's embrace and caress deal with the other guys. Give the guy with the kiss the combat or zealot specialism to get an extra chance of getting pass heavy saves, and once the wounds get in, laugh as the damage start to amount. Now, the caress is the better GEQ killer, especially if they have an invulnerable save that makes your AP pointless. But what about MEQs? 
Let's do a quick calculation, shall we? Assuming they don't have the zealot specialism:

*Harlequin's Caress vs Tactical Marine
**WS3+ means it will hit 4/6 times, or 2/3 times.
**S5 (3+2) against T4 means it will wound at 3+, or 4/6 times, or 2/3 times.
**AP-2 against 3+ armour save means the marine will save at 5+, giving the harlequin 4/6 chances of wounding.
**This basically means that an attack will have 64/216 chance of wounding, or 8/27 (16/54). 

*Harlequin's Embrace vs Tactical Marine
**WS3+ means it will hit 4/6 times, or 2/3 times.
**WS4 (3+1) against T4 mens it will wound at 4+, or 3/6 times, or 1/2 times.
**AP-3 against + armour save means the marine will save at 6+, giving the harlequin 5/6 chances of wounding.
**This basically means that an attack will have 60/216 chance of wounding, or 15/54.

**Overall, this means the Caress will hurt 16/54, whereas the Embrace will hurt 15/54. That is a very small difference, so you will be the judge of whether or not it's worth the extra point. 

With that out of the way, let's go to the pistols. Again, the harlequins are not there to use their pistols at range, they are there to use them at CQC whenever possible. But hey, every bit of power counts, and who knows, maybe you're lucky and actually manage to hit something in overwatch when sitting at the receiving end of a charge. All of the harlequin's pistols are Pistol 1, so a single attack each. They all pack a punch, but even at their best, a single shot is not that reliable. Also, the harlequins have plasma grenades, which are great, D6 attacks with S4 and AP-1, they could do a lot of damage if for some reason you'd rather attack from a distance than charge (maybe you're too close to a flamer and don't want to take the risk?). 

Analyzing the harlequin's pistols:

*The Shuriken pistol is the standard gun of the harlequins. S4 Ap0 and every wound roll of 6+ gains an AP-3. Not bad for a free weapon.
*The Neuro Disruptor is S4 AP-3 D3 damage for 2 points. Much better than the shuriken.
*The Fusion Pistol is a brutal gun that will do an incredible amount of damage if it hits. Seriously, this is basically a melta. S8, AP-4 D6 damage. If it hits, it can turn its target into goop. That for 3 points, it's a steal. Be careful, however, as this weapon is 6" compared to the other pistols' 12". In theory you won't ever notice the difference, but it's important to point it out. 

In general, you want the Fusion Pistol, but keep in mind that the harlequin's advantage is melee, not shooting. Even if it's just a matter of accuracy, you can fail a single pistol shot, but it's very difficult to miss 4 attacks of WS3+. If you run short of points and you have to prioritize a melee or a pistol upgrade, always choose melee. 

The Harlequins have access to three different commanders, which helps them a bit with their lack of unit variety.

The Troupe Master is a buff player. That's it. For 50p you get a 5W A5 BS2 WS2+ Ld9 player that has access to the same weapons and gear the rest of your grunts have. It's decent, especially considering the extra wounds will make him able to take a pounding, but it will crumble fast against units that make multiple damages per attack. The idea here is to boost him with the best gear and throw him to put a smile on the face of your enemies. He has access to a power sword, but it's worse than the embrace. Ignore it. 

The Death Jester is your only unit with some kind of range. The Shrieker Cannon is a weapon with two modes, both with 24" range. 
*Assault 1 mode is S6 AP-1, with the extra ability of each time an infantry unit is slain by an attack made with this weapon, you can roll a D6 for each enemy model within 2" of said unit. On a roll of 4+ the model being rolled for suffers a mortal wound. If you want to deal with units that are close to each other to boost one another, this is your mode. This means the Jester can kill multiple units on a single attack, making this fucker extremely good against armies that need to stick close to each other.
*Assault 3 mode is S6 AP0. And that's it. Honestly, the Assault 1 is better in every way, but sometimes you have to shoot a single target, so what are you gonna do?

Also, give this fucker the shooting specialism. BS2+ re-rolling ones pretty much guarantees he will never fail a shot. Add to that the ability to ignore enemy cover and the ability to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies with the Death Is Not Enough rule, and you have a winner here. Oddly enough, you want this one OUTSIDE of melee, he has no special weapon to defend himself on CQC.

Finally, we have the Shadowseer. The psyker of the group, it's a mixed unit that could go either close combats or medium range. It's miststave is good, I suppose, but you usually want the psyker out of melee, just in case the enemy can punch you back. Still, S5 (3+2) AP-1 D3 damage with A3 is okay. The weird gun is the Hallucinogen grenade launcher. At 18", its effect is that, if a model is hit by this weapon (and with BS2+ it's difficult not being hit), roll 2D6, and if the result is equal or higher than the enemy's morale, it gets an instant mortal wound. That is really good, though not as useful as you may think. Units with low morale like orks, cultists, guardsmen... are rather squishy as they are, so shooting them or going against them in melee should be enough. Trying to do this against a marine (or worse, a necron) is going to be rather difficult at the best of times. Still, a chance of a mortal wound is always nice, and it only needs to hit, which saves you the trouble of wounding and saving said wound. It could be particularly effective against tyranids, though, considering their reliance on synapse creatures makes their morale very low. It has the option of getting a neuro disruptor, but it's 6p and you might not want this unit in melee, so you do you. 

The psychic powers are decent, especially with the psyker specialism. I would ignore the ones that boost the psyker's melee capabilities unless it's already in combat. The only exception is the one that grants it 3++ saves, which are always nice and turns it into a decent Distraction Carnifex, due to its ability of making a lot of mortal wounds per turn. Misfortune is also nice, a great boost for the harlequin's kill of the zealot or for emergency attacks against something you want dead. Psybolt is your classic smite-like attack, you know what it does already. Out of them all, Mirror of Minds has the potential of being devastating, though it's quite random. With a warp charge of 7, you cans elect an enemy unit within 12" of the Shadowseer. Both players throw a D6, and if the harlequin's player rolls equal or higher than the opponent, the target gets a mortal wound. You can repeat the process until the target is taken out of action or the other player gets a higher roll. This is just ridiculously effective if done right, but it depends a lot on luck, so be wary of that. Still, the chance of getting 1-3 mortal wounds in one go is impressive. Great to deal with units with 2-3 wounds, but don't expect killing commanders with this, sooner or later you'll botch the rolls. 

Overall, while the Harlequins are very limited in their strategies, what they do they do really well. A good harlequin player will divide and conquer the enemy with their units. An enemy that survives melee and falls back immediately gives the rest of his squad the chance of blasting the clown to smithereens, something bad considering you'll only have around 5-6 units on a vanilla Kill Team. If you start losing units, the enemy might get you through morale, so be wary of that. Against low model teams, harlequines have a decent advantage of hitting fast and hitting like a truck, but beware of necrons. The more attacks they get, the more chances of getting that dreaded 6+. High count teams will try to bait you leaving one particular unit in the open for you to charge, while the rest waits to either survive or for you to forget to consolidate. Remember you are faster than most teams, use it to your advantage. If you can, consolidate by getting yourself close either another enemy unit or getting out of dodge (usually climbing a wall hidden from the enemy). Also, don't get cocky with your 4++ save. Outside of that, your unit is pretty feeble, so spam teams will take advantage of that by getting low AP high attacks on you. Something will enter one way or another, and they will outnumber you. 
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'''Counterplay:'''
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The followers of Cegorrah will always follow the same strategy: get up close fast, strike hard in melee, and then run away. Don't let them do that. Stop them in their tracks. Unlike most armies, their general 4++ means that plasma spam and more specialized weaponry is pointless. Either you go for maximizing the amount of shots you can do for each unit, or you go for mortal wounds. AdMech's Radium Carbines are great for this, considering they have 3 attacks of BS3+ on them, which can be boosted easily enough with the comms' help. While you can't do anything about that pesky invulnerable save, something will get in sooner or later, and considering the harlequin's knack for CQC, they will frequently be outside of cover. If the vanguards somehow survive melee, their radiation effect will make the harlequins T2, so you better take advantage of that. The guard could take advantage of their plethora of rapid fire options to lit them on fire after they get close. They won't be able to swarm you, but tey can impair you by getting into melee against your bet dudes. Other units that could spam the clowns out of existence are SM's Missile Launchers, AM's Grenade Launcher, DeathWatch's Frag Cannon, GK's Psylencer, TS's Soulreaper Cannon... Though keep in mind that the Harlequins will try to go through harsh or difficult to see terrain to get to you. Units that could booby trap pieces of terrain are probably effective against them, especially if said trap deals mortal wounds that ignore the 4++.

Also, grenades. Usually they don't do much, but if you have a clown close enough and you only have one shot weapons, it's worth a shot.  

Flamers are an interesting proposition, but mostly as support. Remember that the harlequins can charge you from longer distances than your flamer's range, so the best way to hit them with that is falling back with a unit and burning the clown while it's unprotected. 

If you want to beat them in melee, CHARGE FIRST. If you're expecting to survive a round first and then hit back you're not thinking straight. At best, they will fail most of the hits and only take one out of your many wounds. At worst, they will kill you and then consolidate on another of your troops. The most frequent scenario is a flesh wound that impedes combat performance. In this cases, charging first with something that can deal with a ton of attacks makes sense. Negavolt Cultists are very good in this case, as not only they can throw a flurry of attacks against the enemy, but also gain a chance of a mortal wound after charging (not to mention they have their own 5++ save, so they are quite protected). Something similar could happen with the Sicarians, especially the Ruststalker. Again, you throw as many attacks as you can, then try to get the mortal wound in. Marines are good in this, considering their performance is not impaired with a single mortal wound, so they can hit back like a truck if they're not down.  

Tau have serious problems against the harlequins. The best shooting team in the game will struggle against the best CQC team, on the basis that their invulnerable saves and their fast movement eliminates the biggest advantages the Tau have: range and firepower. The Rail Rifle is too expensive and too slow to be effective, even with the chance of a mortal wound. And their grenades make no damage. And if you're expecting to beat them in melee... A good use of your drones here is mandatory, as well as using the terrain smartly. Consider that you have no prayer of challenging their mobility and their melee prowess, so shoot them whenever possible. You need to maximize your collective overwatch. Get your units un groups of 2-3, so as to not risk one massive overwatch volley and leave the rest unprotected. Get camouflage wherever possible. Use the 6++ your drones give you wisely. Also, the smart missile system is probably the best gun you get against them. Heavy 4 30" with the ability of hitting unseen units, you could wound the clowns very soon. S5 means they will wound at 3+, and their AP0 is irrelevant against the invulnerable. Boost them with markerlights whenever possible, repeating rolls of one is the best here.
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