A Tale of Many Gamers: 1000 points army list

The first “monthly unit” deadline for A Tale Of Many Gamers is November 2nd so I should get started. I've built my ten Darkshards, which were a joy to put together, but I haven't started painting them yet. At the moment I think the sea green colour scheme of Karond Kar would suit, though I don't think I'll do the armour entirely in sea green.

Just to give me something to aim for I knocked together an army list. A simple thousand points to start, nothing too fancy until I know how much the second wave miniatures cost:

Heroes

Master armed with hand weapon and shield, wearing heavy armour and a Sea Dragon cloak. 78 points

Sorceress armed with hand weapon. Level 2 Wizard using the Lore of Dark Magic. 115 points

Core

10 Darkshards with hand weapons and repeater crossbows, full command. 150 points

20 Dreadspears with spears and shields, full command. 210 points

20 Witch Elves with two hand weapons, full command. 250 points

Special

5 Cold One Knights with hand weapons, lances and shields, full command. 180 points

Total: 983 points

A decently equipped general; a basic wizard; a nice spread of Core choices so I can see what works before I start expanding; and some Cold One Knights because I love Cold One Knights. Nice and simple, relatively inexpensive, largely off-the-shelf (the Master I'll have to mail order). I wonder if I can get it done by Christmas.

(No, I can't.)

A Tale of Many Gamers begins (Cult of Slaanesh)

So the local GW is running “A Tale of Many Gamers”. Simple rules: start an army, finish a unit a month, bring it into the shop for photographing for the store's Facebook page. I know my track record on these things is awful but since I was planning to start a new army anyway this'll be a decent enough target to aim for. Might also persuade me to pursue an army in a sensible fashion: one box set at a time (doomed...).

The Army

The new Dark Elves models are out tomorrow and I can't resist. I've wanted to play a Dark Elves army for years but the old Spearmen always put me off. My friend Matt felt the same way so he's starting on Dark Elves as well. He's going for a heavy Khainite theme so I'm going in the other direction and resurrecting the old Cult Of Slaanesh from the Storm Of Chaos campaign.

The Plan

The old list isn't legal or terribly competitive any more but what we have nowaday is Storm Of Magic and the Daemonic Pact scroll of binding. So the plan is to make a 2,400 points Dark Elves army with a 600 points Slaaneshi Daemons Of Chaos allied force.

I'm also consulting with my regular opponents over house rules for updating the Druchii Anointed and using some Warriors Of Chaos models to get the feel of the old list.

The First Move

Pop into the shop Saturday morning, get the new Army Book and a box of Dreadspears to make as a ten-man unit of Darkshard crossbowmen for a nice, slow start to the project.

The Rumour Mill presents: Dark Elves

Why do I want this rumour to be true? BECAUSE THIS!

Of course, no sooner do I make a commitment to concentrate on one army than rumours abound of GW getting around to Dark Elves, an army I've wanted for years but where the models always put me off. There aren't any leaked pics yet but a supposedly genuine leaked release list of plastic box sets has been doing the rounds:

New Dark Elf Warriors (making spear, sword and crossbowmen)

Witch Elves

Cold One Chariot/“Scroungerunner” (one assumes a typo of something like “Scourgerunner”)

Executioners/Black Guard

Dark Riders/Warlocks

Cauldron of Blood/Blood Throne

Hydra/Kraken

It does look like a wish list but I'm inclined to believe it, not in spite of its unlikeliness but because of it. Let's face it, predicting what GW is going to do is a mug's game nowadays. Not too long ago an Army Book or Codex every month would have been unthinkable let alone some of the madness they've pulled out model-wise. So let's run down the objections to this list and see if we can adjudicate them based on GW's past behaviour (act of madness though that may be):

Yes, the first item in that list is a re-sculpt of a core plastic but since the ultimate GW sacred cow, the Space Marine Tactical Squad, just got a re-sculpt that's hardly a barrier to believability. Core re-sculpts are rare, I think the last Fantasy ones were the Empire State Troops in 7th edition, but they do happen.

Yes, it's seven plastic kits but Warriors of Chaos didn't get much less. Admittedly, that was a two-wave release but since the Chapter House ruling has put GW off the idea of staggered waves they might be in a mood to try a large release.

And let's face it, Dark Elves need a large plastic release. Some of these kits can make new units but all of them at least include options to make existing units, mainly ones that exist now only in prohibitively expensive metal or Finecast. Appropriately enough the Dark Elves are quite similar to the Dark Eldar before their last Codex: a model range in need of a massive, top-to-bottom revamp.

And if you're resigned to the fact that such a huge amount of work has to be done on an army (and I think “has to be” is a good characterisation since all that Finecast can't do much for the army's commercial viability) what better release slot than the one announced the day before Games Day and released the weekend after? GW can showcase the new models at the convention, wheel out the games developers and sculptors to talk design philosophy, flash some glimpses of the new Army Book and get some good buzz going over the internet to help offset the higher-than-normal R-and-D costs of the release.

And then I can finally have the Cult Of Pleasure army I've been considering on-and-off since Storm Of Chaos but could never previously afford.